Reviews – Page 86 – Sincerely Karen Jo

bookreview

fraternize

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Published September 12th 2017 by Skyscape

Genre(s): New Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Sports

Kindle Edition, 320 pages

Emerson just made her dream come true as a professional cheerleader for her favorite pro football team. But even though the plus-size athlete is breaking down boundaries, she still has to contend with the massive rulebook. Carbs? Nope. Chocolate? Definitely not. Still, Emerson loves her curves, and she’ll rock the hell out of this job even if it kills her. Except for one mandate that is easier read than done…

No fraternizing with the players.

Problem one is Miller Quinton: Emerson’s first love, first sex, and the guy who still ignites her daydreams and R-rated fantasies. Thrown back together, Miller and Emerson feel the undeniable pull of passion again, even if the conflict that tore them apart seems insurmountable. Then there’s way-too-sexy Grant Sanchez. He has a serious reputation with the ladies, and when it comes to winning someone he wants, he doesn’t let anyone stand in his way.

Now Emerson is breaking every rule in the manual. But what she doesn’t know is that she’s part of a wicked little game—one that could steal both her dream and her heart.

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AMAZON – BARNES & NOBLE

reviewrating

5hearts

Breathtakingly Sweet, Absolutely Fun, Deeply Affecting and a Delightfully Wonderful Story

reviewthoughts

Sometimes books can surprise you and completely take your breath away. This book certainly did that and more. I don’t know why it took me so long to pick this book up, but I had so much fun reading Fraternize and still cannot stop thinking about it!

I think sports romances are seriously growing on me. Or maybe this book was just so well-written and filled with so many emotions that I fell instantly and ridiculously in love with the characters and their stories. Fraternize is hilarious, sweet, heartfelt, and deeply affecting. An amazingly breathtaking story about healing, forgiveness, friendship and finding love again. It had me swooning, laughing, crying and smiling through the ugly tears. I was an emotional mess… but the absolute best kind.

Love triangles suck… I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with them cause I never know how I’ll react. I honestly don’t like being torn and that’s exactly how I was with this book. My heart was aching and splitting in two because I loved both Miller and Sanchez so damn much. They had a lot of amazing, adorable, and endearing qualities I love in book boyfriends…actually make that IRL. They were both passionate, protective, sweet, hard-working, caring, and would do anything for the people they love. They’re totally swoony, sexy, lovable, and undeniable hard to resist. Even if I did favor one over the other, I still couldn’t choose the “ONE” I wanted Emerson to pick. When it was obvious who she was going to choose, I didn’t want to keep reading, but at the same time I couldn’t stop. It was torture and I was prepared for so much heartbreak. However, as sad as I was for the man she left behind, I was actually really happy with who Emerson ended up with in the end. My heart certainly did break into pieces, but it was also full of hope, love, and so much joy by the time I finished. Everything just fell into place and I couldn’t be happier with how this story ended.

Fraternize is the first book I’ve read by Rachel Van Dyken and I’ll have you know that it most definitely will not be the last. The pacing was really great and her writing style is incredibly engaging, emotional, and wonderfully evocative. I loved the POVs and felt that I really connected with the characters and was able to experience all their pain, sadness, excitement, happiness, and love. I absolutely adored them all — Emerson, Kinsey, Miller, Sanchez, Jax and even the other side characters. They were just really charming, hilarious, and so likable.

The romances were sweet, cute and also painfully real. It had all the ups and downs, the smiles and tears, and every FEELS. I really enjoyed the past and present love stories and thought they were beautifully well-written. Also, huge props to Rachel Van Dyken for creating fantastic love interests. Like I said, I did favor one, but I truly cared for the both of them. I also loved that they wanted Emerson to be happy and did whatever they had to do to give Emerson her HEA. And that’s one of the main reasons I fell so hard for them. Not to mention, Miller and Sanchez had this adorably funny and heartwarming bromance that made me smile and swoon.

With amazingly written storylines, lovable characters, and heart tugging moments, Fraternize gave me plenty of achingly delicious swoons and feels. I adored every single moment from beginning to end and had one of the most delightfully emotional and affecting experience. I have no doubt that this will end up on my top favorite reads this year and I honestly cannot recommend it enough.

I received an advance reader copy of this from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thought and opinions are my own.

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$infraction$

authorbio2

rachelvandyken Rachel Van Dyken is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author of regency and contemporary romances. When she’s not writing you can find her drinking coffee at Starbucks and plotting her next book while watching The Bachelor.
She keeps her home in Idaho with her Husband, adorable son, and two snoring boxers! She loves to hear from readers!
Want to be kept up to date on new releases? Text MAFIA to 66866!

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I hope you enjoyed reading my review and add this amazing book/series to your TBR.

Have any of you read this book? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below.

Until next time, thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day loves!!

Happy Friday Loves! Welcome to my Blog Tour Stop for Love Me, Love Me Not by S.M. Koz hosted by Xpresso Book Tours. Today, I have my review to share with you and a giveaway at the end.

aboutthebook2

Love Me, Love Me Not
S.M. Koz
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: June 19th 2018
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult

Family, abandonment, and forbidden romance are at the core of SM Koz’s powerful and emotionally charged novel about a teen who falls for her foster brother.

When Hailey Brown is removed from her home and put into foster care, all she wants is a safe, comfortable place where she can finish school and move on with her life. It’s not easy adjusting to a new school and a new life, but Mr. and Mrs. Campbell and their teenage son, Brad, welcome Hailey with open arms.

As Hailey begins to adjust to her new life, she and Brad grow closer. For the first time, Hailey feels like she might have a real shot at a future. Soon, however, Hailey realizes her relationship with Brad has crossed the line from friendship into something more. But being with Brad would mean giving up the perfect life that Hailey has waited so long to have.

Can Hailey and Brad resist the feelings that are developing between them—or will they risk it all to be together?

Chosen by readers like you for Macmillan’s young adult imprint Swoon Reads, SM Koz delivers a powerful debut about the ups and downs of being a foster child.

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Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

reviewrating

4hearts

A Painfully Beautiful and Wonderfully Emotional Ride

reviewthoughts

Love Me, Love Me Not by S.M. Koz is a painfully beautiful and incredibly emotional ride that had me in tears a few times. It wasn’t an easy read, but it was inspiring, hopeful, and touching.

This book had so many achingly intense FEELS. There were a few light, sweet, and fun moments, but for the most part this story was very emotional, and heartbreaking. Drugs, child neglect, sex, abuse, unhealthy relationships, and prostitution are never easy issues to read about. I was clenching my heart ready for the tears as I felt Hailey’s emotions every step of the way. Her constant fear of failing and of her past messing up with her happiness, the growing attraction to her foster brother, her insecurities about not being good enough, and the possibility that her life would lead nowhere – all of these consumed me and had me on edge the entire time. And even though I kind of had an idea that something devastating would happen and what it was, I honestly was not prepared for how everything played out. There were tears and anger and sadness, but the ending was also filled with so much love. It was touching and just absolutely wonderful.

Hailey was such an easy character to like and I really admired her for always trying to do her best in every situation. She may be passive and incredibly insecure, but she was also strong, kind, determined, and had such a good heart. I truly cannot imagine myself living her life and not turning into this horrible, angry, and resentful person. She’s been through so much pain, sadness, neglect, and abuse, but rather than give-up, she wanted to make her life better. She may be broken in so many ways, but she’s a fighter and a survivor. I really enjoyed getting to know Hailey and watching her become more trusting and confident as she slowly realized that there are good people who’d support her and a life and future filled with kindness, family, friendship and love.

I really liked Brad. He’s caring, protective, sweet, and funny too. However, I was frustrated and quite disappointed with some of his choices. He was reckless at times and did what he wanted without thinking about the consequences. I kind of wanted to slap him cause he was acting immature… But, I had to remember that he’s still a teenager so I could totally understand why he acted the way he did sometimes. Other than that, I thought he was absolutely charming and if I were in Hailey’s shoes, I probably would fall for him too.

The foster sibling romance definitely made me think about the show, The Fosters, and Callie and Brandon. Even the names are quite similar to each other — Hailey/Callie and Brad/Brandon — and that’s what made me really curious about this book. Personally, I’m not a big fan of this trope, but I do find it very intriguing. I also enjoy reading about complicated relationships and any romance that’s “forbidden.” So even though there weren’t a lot of swoons happening, a few cute and flirty moments did make me smile. I also think that Hailey and Brandon were super adorable together and I was really happy with how their relationship turned out in the end.

Overall, I thought this was a wonderfully written story. It’s terribly heartbreaking, incredibly moving, sometimes funny and sweet, and absolutely real in every way. The writing, the story, the characters, the relationships and all the emotions affected me. I really did enjoy going on this emotional journey so if you’re in the mood for a book with that and a lot of heart, then I highly recommend you add this to your TBR.

I received an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley for participating in a blog tour hosted by Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for a fair and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

authorbio2

SM KOZ is a medical writer from North Carolina, where she lives with her husband, two sons, and numerous pets. She has a BS in Biology from Duke University and a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from North Carolina State University. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys reading, photographing nature and her family, gardening, travelling, and attempting, usually unsuccessfully, to decorate birthday cakes. Love Me, Love Me Not is her first traditionally published novel.

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