My very first book bingo experience!

ramblings12

 

bingo

*click on picture to enlarge*

Ever take part in a cool reading program? Have you done a book bingo before? Well, I haven’t… and I suck at normal bingo. However, my friend included me in her family’s summer reading bingo challenge and I couldn’t be more excited. I’ve always seen blogs do book bingo before but never really knew what it entailed and in all honesty would forget about it a few hours later. They’ve always seemed like a fun and cool idea though. So, I’m not going to lie, when my friend handed me my lime green bingo card, I [internally] squealed with excitement. I’m finally going to play a bingo game that I have a shot at winning.

I’m excited to take part in this because a lot of the boxes are out of my comfort-zone when it comes to reading. I’m primarily a romance reader from anything to contemporary to paranormal romance. If it has romance in it, I’m game. However, there are some boxes that have nothing to do with romance. I’ve managed to figure out books for some of the boxes but not all of them, and what I have written down isn’t definite. So, if you see a box that already has something written down but you have a better suggestion, I’m all ears. I tried to choose books that I already have but because a lot of them (like poetry, audio books, and humor) aren’t ones I’d typically read/listen to, I’m at a lost for what is and isn’t good. I think the scariest one for me is the audio book. I tried an audio book once, I wound up two hours in and realized that I had zoned out the entire time. Plus, one of the boxes is for an author from Indiana. Any idea who’s out there from Indiana who writes a good romance?

 

Can you recommend some good books that would fall under any of the boxes?

I feel like the whole purpose of this is to get out there and read books you might not have otherwise read. I’d love to try new authors that I haven’t read before. So, any recommendations are greatly appreciated.  🙂

kRISTIN

Review: Moonlight on Nightingale Way by Samantha Young

23604335Moonlight on Nightingale Way
(On Dublin Street, #6)
By: Samantha Young
Publisher: NAL Trade
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:
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Goodreads

Logan spent two years paying for the mistakes he made. Now, he’s ready to start over. He has a great apartment, a good job, and plenty of women to distract him from his past. And one woman who is driving him to distraction…

Grace escaped her manipulative family by moving to a new city. Her new life, made to suit her own needs, is almost perfect. All she needs to do is find her Mr. Right—or at least figure out a way to ignore her irresistible yet annoying womanizer of a neighbor.

Grace is determined to have nothing to do with Logan until a life-changing surprise slowly begins turning the wild heartbreaker into exactly the kind of strong, stable man she’s been searching for. Only just when she begins to give into his charms, her own messy past threatens to derail everything they’ve worked to build…

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Review: Sweet by Emmy Laybourne

18657784Sweet
By: Emmy Laybourne
Publisher: Macmillan
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Genre: YA
Rating:
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Goodreads

*People would kill to be thin.*

Solu’s luxurious celebrity-filled “Cruise to Lose” is billed as “the biggest cruise since the Titanic,” and if the new diet sweetener works as promised—dropping five percent of a person’s body weight in just days—it really could be the answer to the world’s obesity problem. But Laurel is starting to regret accepting her friend Viv’s invitation. She’s already completely embarrassed herself in front of celebrity host, Tom Forelli (otherwise known as the hottest guy ever!) and she’s too seasick to even try the sweetener. And that’s before Viv and all the other passengers start acting really strange.

*But will they die for it, too?*

Tom Forelli knows that he should be grateful for this job and the opportunity to shed his childhood “Baby Tom-Tom” image. His publicists have even set up a ‘romance’ with a sexy reality star. But as things on the ship start to get a bit wild, he finds himself drawn to a different girl. And when his celebrity hosting gig turns into an expose on the shocking side effects of Solu, it’s Laurel that he’s determined to save.

Emmy Laybourne, author of the Monument 14 trilogy, takes readers on a dream vacation that goes first comically, then tragically, then horrifyingly, wrong.

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Review: Vicious Cycle by Katie Ashley

20622381Vicious Cycle
(Vicious Cycle, #1)
By: Katie Ashley
Publisher: NAL Trade
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Genre: Romance
Rating:
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Goodreads

Deacon Malloy’s life is dedicated to the Hell’s Raiders motorcycle club. Tough, hard, and fast with his fists, he serves the group as sergeant at arms. But his devil-may-care approach to life is thrown for a loop when the five-year-old daughter he never knew existed lands on the club steps.

Alexandra Evans is devoted to all her students—but there’s always been something about Willow Malloy that tugs at her heart. There’s an aura of sadness about her, a girl in need of all the love Alexandra can give. When Willow stops coming to school, Alexandra’s search leads to a clubhouse full of bikers…and a father hell-bent on keeping his daughter always within sight.

The moment Deacon sees Alexandra, he has to have her in his bed—and he’s never met a woman yet who couldn’t be persuaded. No matter how attracted she is to Deacon, Alexandra refuses to be just another conquest. But it’s Deacon himself who could be seduced—into a brighter future for himself, his daughter, and the woman he’s falling for against all odds.

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Review: Sweet Ache by K. Bromberg

22472103Sweet Ache
(Driven, #6)
By: K. Bromberg
Publisher: Signet
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:
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Goodreads

Hawkin Play, the bad boy rock star with a good guy heart, has lived a lifetime of cleaning up after his twin brother’s mistakes. Hunter’s most recent screw-up could land Hawke in jail and risk the band’s future. Hawke agrees to guest lecture at a local college to stay in the judge’s good graces—and a bet with his bandmate to seduce his sexy teaching assistant is icing on the cake.

Quinlan Westin is harder to bed than Hawke imagined. She knows his type and is determined to avoid the rocker at all costs—even if their attraction runs deeper than simple lust.

Just as Hawke might finally be winning over the girl, his brother has other plans. When Hunter realizes his twin finally has a weakness, he’ll stop at nothing to take advantage…

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Review: Mia and the Bad Boy by Lisa Burnstein

25446202Mia and the Bad Boy
(Backstage Pass, #2)
By: Lisa Burnstein
Publisher: Entangled: Crush
Published: May 19, 2015
Genre: YA Romance
Rating:
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Goodreads

This good girl’s about to meet her match…

Ryder Brooks is living the dream—he’s famous, loved by millions of girls, and miserable. All he really wants is to write his own music, not Seconds to Juliet’s sugary sweet pop. In order to do that, though, the “bad boy” of the band will have to play by the rules. And that includes behaving with his new—and super cute—über-good-girl tutor.

Mia Reyes is in fangirl heaven. Tutoring her favorite member of her favorite band? It’s a dream come true…until it turns into a complete nightmare. Ryder is nothing like she thought. He’s crude, arrogant, and pretty much a total jerk. And the worst part? She’s roped into pretending to be his girlfriend so that no one finds out he’s being tutored. Fake kisses, plenty of PDA, and even sharing his hotel room…

But sometimes even the baddest of bad boys needs a little redemption.

 

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Review: Gathering Frost by Kaitlyn Davis

24402708Gathering Frost
(Once Upon a Curse, #1)
By: Kaitlyn Davis
Publisher: Self-Published
Published: Feb. 17, 2015
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rating:
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Goodreads

Jade was only a little girl when the earthquake struck. Before her eyes, half of New York City disappeared, replaced by a village that seemed torn out of a storybook. Horses and carriages. Cobblestone streets. A towering castle. And, above all, a queen with the magical ability to strip emotions away.

Ten years later and Jade has forgotten what it is to feel, to care…even to love. Working as a member of the queen’s guard, she spends most of her time on the city wall staring at the crumbling skyscrapers of old New York. But everything changes when the queen’s runaway son, Prince Asher, returns. Jade is tasked with an unusual mission–to let the Prince capture her, to make him trust her, and then to betray his secrets to the crown. In return, she’ll earn her freedom. But life outside the queen’s realm is more than Jade bargained for. Under Asher’s relentless taunts, her blood begins to boil. Under his piercing gaze, her heart begins to flutter. And the more her icy soul begins to thaw, the more Jade comes to question everything she’s ever known–and, more importantly, whose side she’s really on.

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Review: Destined for an Early Grave by Jeaniene Frost

5604848Destined for an Early Grave
(Night Huntress, #4)
By: Jeaniene Frost
Publisher: Avon
Published: July 28, 2009
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Rating:

Goodreads

Her deadly dreams leave her in grave danger

Since half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her undead lover Bones met six years ago, they’ve fought against the rogue undead, battled a vengeful Master vampire, and pledged their devotion with a blood bond. Now it’s time for a vacation. But their hopes for a perfect Paris holiday are dashed when Cat awakes one night in terror. She’s having visions of a vampire named Gregor who’s more powerful than Bones and has ties to her past that even Cat herself didn’t know about.

Gregor believes Cat is his and he won’t stop until he has her. As the battle begins between the vamp who haunts her nightmares and the one who holds her heart, only Cat can break Gregor’s hold over her. She’ll need all the power she can summon in order to bring down the baddest bloodsucker she’s ever faced . . . even if getting that power will result in an early grave.

 

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Review: Cold Burn of Magic by Jennifer Estep

22715908Cold Burn of Magic
(Black Blade, #1)
By: Jennifer Estep
Publisher: Kensington
Published:April 28, 2015
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rating:
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Goodreads

It’s not as great as you’d think, living in a tourist town that’s known as “the most magical place in America.” Same boring high school, just twice as many monsters under the bridges and rival Families killing each other for power.

I try to keep out of it. I’ve got my mom’s bloodiron sword and my slightly illegal home in the basement of the municipal library. And a couple of Talents I try to keep quiet, including very light fingers and a way with a lock pick.

But then some nasty characters bring their Family feud into my friend’s pawn shop, and I have to make a call–get involved, or watch a cute guy die because I didn’t. I guess I made the wrong choice, because now I’m stuck putting everything on the line for Devon Sinclair. My mom was murdered because of the Families, and it looks like I’m going to end up just like her. . .

 

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Review: The Darkest Lie by Gena Showalter

7519472The Darkest Lie
(Lords of the Underworld, #6)
By: Gena Showalter
Publisher: HQN
Published: July 2, 2010
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating:
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Goodreads

Forced to his knees in agony whenever he speaks the truth, Gideon can recognize any lie—until he captures Scarlet, a demon-possessed immortal who claims to be his long-lost wife. He doesn’t remember the beautiful female, much less wedding — or bedding — her. But he wants to . . . almost as much as he wants her.

But Scarlet is keeper of Nightmares, too dangerous to roam free, and a future with her could mean ultimate ruin. Especially as Gideon’s enemies draw closer . . . and the truth threatens to destroy all he’s come to love . . .

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