Category Archives: New Adult

Undeclared
(Woodlands, #1)
By: Jen Frederick
Publisher: Self-Published
Published:April 28, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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For four years, Grace Sullivan wrote to a Marine she never met, and fell in love. But when his deployment ended, so did the letters. Ever since that day, Grace has been coasting, academically and emotionally. The one thing she’s decided? No way is Noah Jackson — or any man — ever going to break her heart again.

Noah has always known exactly what he wants out of life. Success. Stability. Control. That’s why he joined the Marines and that’s why he’s fighting his way — literally — through college. Now that he’s got the rest of his life on track, he has one last conquest: Grace Sullivan. But since he was the one who stopped writing, he knows that winning her back will be his biggest battle yet.

Since this love story started 4 years ago when Grace’s teacher had the class write letters to deployed troops. What started out as a class assignment turned into so much more for the two of them. Grace became his life support while overseas and vowed to become a better man for her. But getting out the military isn’t easy and it took him sometime to get his head on straight. That time spent not communicating left doubts in Grace and she’s now trying to move on from her delusional life with prince charming. Except, one day she exits out of a class only to find him waiting for her. It turns out that he enrolled in the same college as her and wants to reconnect.

I liked the way the author wrote the story. Just about every chapter starts with a letter that was exchanged during his time in the Marine Corp. So you not only get a look at the two of them when they started writing each other but you also get the present time mixed in. So you really get a sense for the history that these two have.

The romance to this story was sweet and slow brewing. In the last letter that Noah wrote Grace, he implied that they would be friends only. So with squishing Grace’s hope of there being more, she’s really reserved around Noah and keeps throwing out the, “Oh course, what are friends for?”, which in turn makes Noah take a step back.

“As soon as we’re done here, I’d go and find the dictionaries and start defacing the word “friend”. I hated it and worse, I was the first to use it. I felt like I was getting slapped in the face with that stupid, shit-ass letter I wrote two years ago. Should I just come out and admit what a fuck-up I was? The whole point of waiting to come and see Grace was to present a non-fucked up version of myself.”

This isn’t your typical New Adult Romance where it’s raging hormones and sex for 200 pages. It’s a sweet story about a Marine and the pen pal who helped him get through some rough times, reuniting after his enlistment.

Will I be reading the next story in the Woodlands series? Definitely! I think Jen did an amazing job on her debut novel and I can’t wait to see what else she comes out with.

“The Marines may have made me a man, but Grace made me human.” -Noah

This Love
(University of Branton, #1)
By: Nazarea Andrews
Publisher: A & A Literary
Published: June 25, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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She wants a summer job and a ride to a wedding.

He wants an assistant and a distraction from the mess his life had become.

They didn’t know they needed each other.

Avery Emili needs two grand. Two grand and a plane ticket–her sister is counting on her to get to Jamaica for her wedding. But the semester is over, and tutoring college freshman and high school students has dried up until the fall.

Atticus Grimes needs help–the messy split with his wife left the twenty-eight year old professor scrambling to keep things together as the semester winds down. Now he’s got a research grant he has to actually do research for and all he wants to do is drown himself in a tall bottle of bourbon.

When Avery sees his ad for an assistant, all she’s thinking is a summer job. But as they spend time together, in the office and out, both of them begin to realize something is there. Something that can’t happen–he’s a professor and she’s a student. And both of them have histories, pasts that won’t let go. Can two broken people pulled apart by expectations find a way to be whole?

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Between the Lines
(Between the Lines, #1)
By: Tammara Webber
Publisher: Self-Published
Published: April 29, 2011
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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Reid Alexander is used to getting what he wants – and what he wants next is his newest costar, Emma Pierce. The universe is lining up nicely to grant his wish, until he’s confronted with two unexpected obstacles on location: a bitter ex-girlfriend and a rival for Emma’s affections.

Emma Pierce just got her big break after years of filming commercials and made-for-TV movies. Winning the lead role in a wide-release film – opposite the very hot Reid Alexander – should be a dream come true. But Emma’s heart is hiding a secret fantasy: she wants to be a normal girl.

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Twisted
(Torn, #2)
By: K.A. Robinson
Publisher: Atria Publishing
Published: May 7, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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Chloe and Drake have found their happily ever after… Almost.

When Chloe’s mother comes back into her life with a bang, it sets off a chain of events no one could have ever expected.
Everyone has their demons, and Chloe and Drake’s hit them with a vengence.

Sex, drugs, money, a crazy ex, and Rock n Roll…. Can they survive it all?

Things are beginning to feel a bit… Twisted.

At the end of Torn, Chloe’s abusive, negligent mother shows up at her doorstep. We find out that Chloe’s aunt is battling cancer and doesn’t have much more time left. Her aunt told her sister (Chloe’s mother) that she wouldn’t see a dime of the money thatshe’s plans on leaving her unless she brings Chloe to her before she passes away. So the story starts off with Chloe going to her Aunt’s estate to not only see her aunt one last time but to convince her not to give her mother a penny of that money. Meanwhile, Drake leaves to start the band’s summer tour and leaves Chloe behind with her dying aunt, unpredictable mother, cousin [Danny] and his best friend/Chloe’s first [Jordan]. Yes, the Drama Llama comes out in full force during this book.

I was hoping that I would enjoy this story more since Chloe and Drake are finally together and there would be no need for cheating. However, so much drama takes place that it left my head spinning. Once the whole dying aunt thing was over, then we were dealing with a jealous ex/stalker, then Drake’s “bad-boy” ways, then Jordan throwing out the “I just want you to know that I’m an option too” card, then more of Chloe’s mother and more of Drake’s issues and around and around it went. Normally, I’m all for a little drama. After all, it’s what makes a story interesting but this was seeming more like a bad episode of Jerry Springer.

One thing I did like about this story was the interaction with the band. We seemed to get a little bit more band time than we did previously. Since, after all, Chloe goes on tour with them for a little bit. I would have liked to have seen a little bit more behind the scene’s when it came to the shows instead of the bus time but that just wasn’t in the cards for this story I guess.

Even though I had issues with the cheating in the first book and the fact that this book had drama bombs blasting all over the place, I still enjoyed the ride.

“Sex is for chumps. I have popcorn.”

Previous reviews from Torn
Torn

Left Drowning
By: Jessica Park
Publisher: Skyscape
Published: July 16, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College. Then a chance meeting sends Blythe crashing into something she doesn’t expect—an undeniable attraction to a dark-haired senior named Chris Shepherd, whose past may be even more complicated than her own. As their relationship deepens, Chris pulls Blythe out of the stupor she’s been in since the night a fire took half her family. She begins to heal, and even, haltingly, to love this guy who helps her find new paths to pleasure and self-discovery. But as Blythe moves into calmer waters, she realizes Chris is the one still strangled by his family’s traumatic history. As dark currents threaten to pull him under, Blythe may be the only person who can keep him from drowning.

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White Trash Beautiful
(White Trash Trilogy, #1)
By: Teresa Mummert
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release Date: July 9, 2012
Genre: New Adult
Rating:

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Cass Daniels isn’t waiting for her knight in shining armor. She knows that girls like her don’t get a happily ever after. Not if you live in a trailer with your mom, work at a greasy spoon diner, and get leered at by old men. Maybe that’s why she puts up with Jackson—her poor excuse for a boyfriend, who treats her like dirt. Cass has learned to accept her lot in life. That is, until he walks into her diner. . . .

His name is Tucker White, and he’s different from any man Cass has ever known. Tall, tattooed, and bad-ass gorgeous, he’s the lead singer of the rock band Damaged. From the moment they meet, Tucker sees something in Cass he just can’t shake. Something beautiful. Something haunted. Something special. And he’s determined to find out what it is—if only he can get her to open up and let him in. 

Cass has been dealt a nasty hand in life. After her father left her and her mother to fend for themselves, she found herself living in a trailer park, working at the local diner barely making ends meet, with a heroine addicted mother and boyfriend. But everything changes when a new guy shows up at the diner. Not only is he nice and good looking but he continues to come back to the diner to see her. Pretty soon she finds herself swept up in the Cinderella fairy tale.

Cass was definitely an interesting character. She has a lot of fight left in her considering how long she’s been dealing with the abuse and I don’t mean being surrounded by addicts. Her boyfriend beats her and always talks down to her. She pushes it off as the drugs talking but deep down she knows that without him willing to get help and change, he will never be the guy that she originally fell in love with. So when Tucker shows up and genuinely seems to care about her even though he doesn’t even know her, she latches onto that little bit of hope.

Tucker was also an interesting character. We get to see him through Cass’ eyes. When he comes into the diner he immediately recognizes Cass as someone who is in need of help. It doesn’t help when her boyfriend starts man-handling her for money right there in the diner. So he makes it a point to keep coming back so that he can keep an eye on her. He takes it upon himself to be her protector.

“I know what it’s like, Cass, to feel like nobody gives a shit about you. I also know that sometimes we need someone else to make us feel like we’re worth something… to make us feel special, you know.”

I really enjoyed this story. I can’t say that I was overly surprised by what takes place in this book but it was a pleasure to read. I’m pretty excited that this is part of a series since I would love to know more of Cass’ story. Not only that but I will definitely be checking out the author’s other books. I like her simplistic writing style. She doesn’t try to dazzle the readers with crazy descriptions or fancy words that you need a dictionary for. 

“If I wanted to get my life together, I needed to be my own white knight for once.” -Cass

Torn
(Torn, #1)
By: K.A. Robinson
Publisher: Atria Publishing
Published: May 7, 2013
Genre: New Adult
Rating:

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Chloe hasn’t had the best life. With a mother who is gone more often than not, she has had to raise herself. After graduating high school, she leaves to start a new life away at West Virginia University with her best friends Amber and Logan, determined to leave her demons in the past.

On her first day, she meets a stranger who takes her breath away at first sight. Until she met Drake, no one had ever sparked her interest. Now this tattooed and pierced bad boy is all she can think about, no matter how hard she fights it.

Falling for Drake was never part of her plans, but when it happens, things seem to do anything but fall into place.

Dealing with a tragic past, Drake has never cared about anyone else but himself and his band. But when Chloe takes the empty seat next to him in class, things start to change. Instantly drawn to her, he begins to wonder if one girl can take a cold hearted womanizer and change every part of him?

Long hidden feelings are revealed and friendships tested to the brink.

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A Midsummer’s Nightmare
By: Kody Keplinger
Publisher: Poppy
Published: June 5, 2012
Genre: New Adult
Rating:

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Whitley Johnson’s dream summer with her divorcé dad has turned into a nightmare. She’s just met his new fiancée and her kids. The fiancée’s son? Whitley’s one-night stand from graduation night. Just freakin’ great.
Worse, she totally doesn’t fit in with her dad’s perfect new country-club family. So Whitley acts out. She parties. Hard. So hard she doesn’t even notice the good things right under her nose: a sweet little future stepsister who is just about the only person she’s ever liked, a best friend (even though Whitley swears she doesn’t “do” friends), and a smoking-hot guy who isn’t her stepbrother…at least, not yet. It will take all three of them to help Whitley get through her anger and begin to put the pieces of her family together.

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Dragonfly
By: Leigh T. Moore
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: June 6, 2013
Genre: New Adult/Romance
Rating:


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Three bad things I learned this year:
-People you trust lie, even parents.
-That hot guy, the one who’s totally into you, he might not be the one.
-Things are not always how they appear.

Three good things I learned this year:
-Best friends are always there for you, even when they’re far away.
-That other hot guy, the one who remembers your birthday, he just might be the one.
-Oh, and things are not always how they appear.
Anna Sanders expected an anonymous (and uneventful) senior year until she crossed paths with rich-and-sexy Jack Kyser and his twin sister Lucy.

Pulling Anna into their extravagant lifestyle on the Gulf Coast, Lucy pushed Anna outside her comfort zone, and Jack showed her feelings she’d never experienced… Until he mysteriously withdrew.

Anna turned to her internship at the city paper and to her old attraction for Julian, a handsome local artist and rising star, for distraction. But both led to her discovery of a decades-old secret closely guarded by the twins’ distant, single father.

A secret that could permanently change all their lives.

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