Unspoken
(Woodlands, #2)
By: Jen Frederick
Publisher: Pear Tree LCC
Publlished: Sept. 13, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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Whore. Slut. Typhoid Mary.

I’ve been called all these at Central College. One drunken night, one act of irresponsible behavior, and my reputation was ruined. Guys labeled me as easy and girls shied away. To cope, I stayed away from Central social life and away from Central men, so why is it that my new biology lab partner is so irresistible to me?

He’s everything I shouldn’t want. A former Marine involved in illegal fighting with a quick trigger temper and an easy smile for all the women. His fists aren’t the danger to me, though, it’s his charm. He’s sliding his way into my heart and I’m afraid that he’s going to be the one to break me.

Impulsive. Unthinking. Hot tempered.

I allow instinct to rule my behavior. If it feels good, do it, has been my motto because if I spend too much time thinking, I’ll begin to remember exactly where I came from. At Central College, I’ve got fighting and I’ve got women and I thought I was satisfied until I met her.

She’s everything I didn’t realize I wanted and the more time I spend with her, the more I want her. But she’s been hurt too much in the past and I don’t want to be the one to break her. I know I should walk away, but I just can’t.

AM lost her virginity during her freshman year after a night of drinking and partying. Since that day, she’s been labeled a slut by just about everyone on campus. Guys from the lacrosse team are going around saying they hooked up with her when they really haven’t and even a couple of guys have tried to take advantage of her thinking that she’s easy. So AM only goes on campus for classes and then hightails it out of there. She figures, if she’s not seen by her peers, the rumors will go away and people will leave her alone, but so far that hasn’t happened yet.

“If you were a guy, your conquests made you a god. If you were a girl, you were the conquered, no better than a toy.”

Bo’s followed his friend Noah everywhere. Into the Marine Corp, overseas, even to Central College. Last year when they arrived at CC, he had a class with AM. He tried to engage her but she shied away from him and gave him dirty looks. So now that she’s sitting right next to him in Biology, he’s determined to get to know her. The only problem is, she’s a bit prickly towards him and he’s not sure why. However, by making himself her lab partner he’s guaranteed to spend time with her and will hopefully figure out what makes this recluse tick.

“I didn’t mind taking chances, but I wasn’t stupid. I also knew I needed to spend more time with her. If a man in a desert finds a pool of water, he doesn’t leave until he’s lapped that fucker dry.”

I started reading this book and got about 25% through it before I decided to buy and read the first story. It’s not that this story can’t be read as a stand alone but I knew that I’d enjoy the story a lot more if I went back and read the first book. You see the first book focuses on Noah and his now girlfriend and Bo is in there a lot. So you get a sense of who Bo is before he meets AM and you realize how much he’s changed since meeting her.

I liked the pace that the author kept through the entire book. I was never bored or overwhelmed at any time. It was basically a story about a girl who overcomes her bullies and rises above the gossip. I really enjoyed the story and I cannot wait to see who’s story pops up next.

“You know how it’s all about God and country over there in Afghanistan. Well, when you find someone like AM, what you felt about the cause, about being a patriot, is like ating eggs from the MRE pack. Dry, tasteless, meaningless. It’s nothing. I’d kill for her and, I’ll learn to walk away.” -Bo

Previous reviews from Woodlands
Undeclared

Tragic
(Rook and Ronin, #1)
By: J.A. Huss
Publisher: Science Future Press
Published: May 20, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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Rook Walsh is TRAGIC

Because life so far – just sucks. Some girls get parents. Rook got the foster care system. Some girls get Prince Charming. Rook got an abusive frog. Some girls get lucky…

Rook got a second chance.

And she took it. Because when fate throws you a bone – you grab it with both hands and run.

Antoine Chaput knows the minute he spies Rook in his photography studio that she’s got The Look. The dark and desperate look he must have to land the exclusive TRAGIC media contract.

Rook is paired up with top model, Ronin, and he’s everything her abusive ex-boyfriend wasn’t. Patient, gentle, happy, attentive, and sexy! He knows exactly what to do to make Rook blush for Antoine’s camera.

Rook’s luck changes in an instant and suddenly she’s the darling of the modeling world. It’s a dream job to go with a dream guy and all she has to do is look pretty and follow directions. But there’s always a price to pay – and Rook is about to get the bill.

Rook just lost her job and only has $10 to her name. Well actually she HAD $10 but she decided to throw caution to the wind and buy a fancy coffee with it instead. While enjoying said coffee, a business card for a modeling gig dings her in the head. The model at the next table over clearly doesn’t want it, so Rook decides to stop by the place indicated on the card before heading back to the homeless shelter for the night. When she gets there she finds out that if she signs a contract to do the photo shoot, she will not only be walking away with thousands of dollars but they will put her up in an apartment for the duration of the shoot. The shoot’s headline is “TRAGIC” and they are quick to offer her the job when they see her. It’s really a no-brainer for her on whether she’s going to take the job or not.

“She’s a blackbird sitting in a tree staring out at the world, daring the wind to come and knock her off the swaying bough.”

I wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting into before I read this. I saw that is was on sale for $0.99 and bought it. I had no idea what kind of photographs she’d be taking or the world in which she’d be living in. Neither, apparently, did Rook. She’s pretty innocent when it comes to all this modeling business and it takes her a little bit to warm up to the erotic shoots. It also doesn’t help that due to her past, she’s not very trusting when it comes to people. But now she finds herself in an unknown world, needing to trust total strangers in order to make it through to the end.

I was immediately sucked in by Rook’s life. I’ve never read a J.A book before but now I understand why people go crazy over new releases by her. She has a way of detailing everything without putting it into too many words. It’s as if you’re right there with Rook going through what she’s going through. I liked that the book was written in both Rook’s and Ronin’s point of view. So we could get the full spectrum of what was going on instead of it being one sided. Rook is definitely someone who is self-reliant and doesn’t cling to those around her. Life has dealt her a crappy hand and she’s not one to throw in the towel when things get too hard. Rook was a great main character to read about.

I may be new to J.A’s books but she’s made a fan of me with this book. I cannot wait to read more of her work.

“And I sit on the couch, absently flipping though channels, wondering how the fuck I just blew this whole day with a conversation about fruit baskets.” -Ronin

Fallen Too Far
(Too Far Trilogy, #1)
By: Abbi Glines
Publisher: Self-Published
Published: Dec. 14, 2012
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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To want what you’re not supposed to have…

She is only nineteen.

She is his new stepfather’s daughter.

She is still naïve and innocent due to spending the last three years taking care of her sick mother.

But for twenty-four year old Rush Finlay, she is the only thing that has ever been off limits. His famous father’s guilt money, his mother’s desperation to win his love, and his charm are the three reasons he has never been told no.

Blaire Wynn left her small farmhouse in Alabama, after her mother passed away, to move in with her father and his new wife in their sprawling beach house along the Florida gulf coast. She isn’t prepared for the lifestyle change and she knows she’ll never fit into this world. Then there is her sexy stepbrother who her father leaves her with for the summer while he runs off to Paris with his wife. Rush is as spoiled as he is gorgeous. He is also getting under her skin. She knows he is anything but good for her and that he’ll never be faithful to anyone. He is jaded and has secrets Blaire knows she may never uncover but even knowing all of that…

Blaire just may have fallen too far.

I’m so disappointed that I didn’t love this book. I really wanted to love it. However, I think the bad editing really took away from the story for me. I didn’t find myself falling in love with the characters. I found myself more in a zombie state of mind while reading this than in a frenzy to find out what happens next.

I didn’t find the characters engaging and I didn’t find myself falling for Rush. In fact he kind of weirded me out. He starts off as this high and mighty “my dad’s a rock-star” attitude. First he kicks Blaire out of his house when she shows up. Then after his brother talks him into letting her stay, he places Blaire in the housekeepers “room” which is just large enough to fit a bed behind. I kid you not, to get to her “room” she has to go through a door that’s in the back of the pantry and that’s only half of it, it’s actually under the stairs! Blaire’s “room” is a 4×4 closet space under the staircase! Then Rush proceeds to screw every vagina in sight and treats Blaire poorly. By the time he started acting like a descent human being, I had lost interest.

I thought that Blaire was going to be tough and independent. At first she is, but then she starts falling for Rush and all common sense goes out the window. She finds herself giving away her virginity to a guy who’s treated her like crap and who she’s personally seen banging at least two chicks and those were just the two that she saw first hand. She knows that he’s hiding a secret and yet she still drops her IQ and turns into a lusting 19 year old all because he’s oh so sexy.

And the big bad secret… I didn’t find that all upsetting. I won’t go into details and ruin the story but I was expecting something insane involving Nan (Rush’s sister). Maybe, Nan was his adoptive sister and the two of them had been on again and off again for years, resulting in a baby who they raise under the disguise of being their sibling or something equally as shocking. Maybe it was just me but I found myself shrugging my shoulders thinking “So what? I don’t get it. Why are you freaking out?”

I don’t think that I’ll be continuing with the story. The ending didn’t really leave me clamoring for more but I am curious why Blaire comes back. My thoughts… she’s pregnant. Dun Dun Duunnnnnnnn

“Your instant reaction to being scared is to pull out a gun on someone? Damn girl, where are you from? Most girls I know squeal or some shit like that.” -Grant