Review: Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker

Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker

Series: Ten Tiny Breaths #1

Publication date: February 12th, 2013

Publisher: Atria

Pages: 289

Synopsis (according to Goodreads):

Just breathe, Kacey. Ten tiny breaths. Seize them. Feel them. Love them.

Four years ago Kacey Cleary's life imploded when her car was hit by a drunk driver, killing her parents, boyfriend, and best friend. Still haunted by memories of being trapped inside, holding her boyfriend's lifeless hand and listening to her mother take her last breath, Kacey wants to leave her past behind. Armed with two bus tickets, twenty-year-old Kacey and her fifteen-year-old sister, Livie, escape Grand Rapids, Michigan, to start over in Miami. Struggling to make ends meet, Kacey needs to figure out how to get by. But Kacey's not worried. She can handle anything--anything but her mysterious neighbor in apartment 1D.

Trent Emerson has smoldering blue eyes, deep dimples, and he perfectly skates that irresistible like between nice guy and bad boy. Hardened by her tragic past, Kacey is determined to keep everyone at a distance, but their mutual attraction is undeniable and Trent is determined to find a way into Kacey's guarded heart--even if it means that an explosive secret could shatter both their worlds.

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Review:

This was another of my first giveaway wins from a long time ago. I had also accumulated the next installments in the series for review, but I just never got around to reading any of them. That had to change. Especially since I had heard nothing but good things about this little gem and the author who wrote it. I decided to give it a go.

Kacey is completely closed off from every single person in her life aside from her baby sister. She refuses to let herself get close to people because she is sure that the minute she does, they will leave her in some fashion. She struggles with flashbacks of the tragic accident that she was the sole survivor in. She takes her sister away to Miami to escape odd relatives who seem to have ulterior motives for keeping the girls around. On her way she finds herself in situations where she is presented with two new relationships she hadn't thought she'd ever struggle with again: friendship and love. But the demons of her past are always there to threaten any shred of happiness Kacey may find in her new surroundings. With the help of the hunk-next-door can Kacey finally put an end to her anxiety issues and fear to find true happiness?

However, the hunk-next-door, Trent, has his own demons and his own reasons for wanting to get close to Kacey. He has secrets that if Kacey ever found out about, it could destroy her world entirely.

This story was one of the hardest I have ever had to read. Not because it was a bad plot or a bad story but because the main character went through so much. The pain Kacey felt every waking moment was palpable and dripped off the pages to make even my own chest ache for her. Kacey dealt with so much and it seemed every time she found a bit of happiness or forgot her problems for even a nanosecond, something happened to drag her back into her pits of despair and fear. I loved when Kacey went into her "bitch mode" where she got snarky and sarcastic. The other characters always seemed so put off by it and I am sure they saw it as her defense mechanism, but I almost wished to see more of that side of her.

I could tell something monumental would happen with Trent and I almost resented the further I got into the story because I feared the grand revelation. Avoiding spoilers, let me just say... it's a doozy. I alternated between hating Trent and loving his patience with Kacey. I have not had such a rollercoaster love affair with a book boyfriend in ages. It shifted from chapter to chapter. I hated him in chapter so-and-so but flip the page and I was swooning. I wonder if I should send K.A. an angry letter for all the heart palpitations she inflicted on me!

Ten Tiny Breaths is a story that sends it's readers on an emotional upheaval of love, hate, and absolute despair when it ends.

Review: Masquerade by Nyrae Dawn

Masquerade by Nyrae Dawn

Series: Games #3

Publication date: January 7th, 2014

Publisher: Forever

Pages: 320

Synopsis (according to Goodreads):

A biker. A tattoo artist. A love to last a lifetime.

Maddox Cross has always had to be tough. When his father went to jail for murder, the teenager took care of his sister and mother. Now on his own and working security at a night club, Maddox wants to become a tattoo artist--a dream that comes closer to reality when he falls for the hottest, most tatted woman he's ever seen. She's wild and beautiful, and Maddox will do anything to be with her.

Bee Malone came to town to open up her new tattoo parlor, Masquerade. Since being kidnapped as a young girl, Bee has had trouble getting close to anyone. But when she meets Maddox, she sees that under his hard biker's body is the sensitive soul of an artist. What starts out as a sizzling one-night stand soon becomes so much more.

Bee wants Maddox to join her tattoo business, but letting him into her life means revealing all her most intimate secrets. And as the past begins to intertwine with her present, Bee fears their love may not be as permanent as their link...

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Review:

I received an e-copy of this book from the publishers on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

So, this book has been sitting on my TBR list for a long time. I figured after reading the first two books, what better way to finish off a series AND get one of my review books reviewed than to continue on with my Nyrae Dawn marathon. I didn't see much of Maddox in the first two books so... interest was peaked.

Maddox has demons of his own from his father ruining Adrian's life much the same as his baby sister, Delaney, does. The difference is that Maddox feels what happened was her fault. The brooding man of few words felt that he should have spoke up and that possibly if he did the entire situation with his family and Adrian's could have been fixed. He take the burden upon his own shoulders for what happened and with that he doesn't allow himself to dream of much anymore. He turns to tattooing and bed hopping as a way of coping. Little did he know that one of his conquests would be the tattoo shop owner he hopes to apprentice for.

Bee also has a way of keeping people away. She never allows herself to feel any sort of closeness with anyone ever again. She felt close to her birth parents and they were taken away when she was kidnapped, then she allowed herself to care about her kidnappers and they, too, were taken away. There is no stability for Bee aside from her new tattoo shop, Masquerade. When Maddox enters her life she is set to keep him away. She doesn't ever see her bedmates again after that one night. But Maddox has talent. He could be good for business and she can see he desperately needs the chance. Reluctantly she takes him on but the more time they spend together the deeper their emotions become.

Two people who are not looking for any sort of commitment may not have any other choice.

Finally, a female protagonist I loved. I liked her even more than Maddox. She was quick witted and sassy. I love sassy female leads. She gives Maddox a challenge which is clearly what the boy needs to get his head out of his butt. The only problem was that the emotional turmoil they both had seemed a little diluted. Maddox feels guilty for not speaking up when something was wrong in his family and Bee, while loved by her kidnappers and birth family alike, can't seem to trust anyone? Eh, not really strong enough reasons to as closed off as they both are... at least to me. If Bee's kidnappers had mistreated her or Maddox had had a bigger role in what his father did then maybe all their issues would have made a little more sense. This book was a case of the characters being flawless but the storyline being lackluster. It was unfortunate.

However, Masquerade was translucent in its depth of love between Maddox and Bee. I found myself wanting to read more about their present and less about their pasts.

Review: Facade by Nyrae Dawn

Facade by Nyrae Dawn

Series: Games #2

Publication date: September 24th, 2013

Publisher: Forever

Pages: 291

Synopsis (according to Goodreads):

Can love save them?

After her father commits a crime that shatters her family, eighteen-year-old Delaney Cross is tired of pretending everything is all right. Packing up her car, she sets out to find the people her father hurt. Her search leads her to places she's never been--and into the arms of Adrian Westfall.

To the outside world, Adrian is a sexy, charming ladie's man. But his playboy persona is just an act. Secretly his soul is tortured by a memory too painful to share. Only Delaney seems to see through his facade to the real man underneath. And for the first time in his life, Adrian feels he can begin to open up about his past.

Together, Adrian and Delaney share a passionate love they never expected to find. Yet both still harbor their own secrets. When the dark truth is finally revealed, will it bring them closer together--or tear them apart forever?

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Review:

After reading the first book in the series and taking the journey with Colt and Cheyenne I was anxious to see how the womanizing Adrian found love. I didn't much care for him as a character when he was introduced in the first book but I still wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Adrian is known for his parties. He is known as the guy who is chronically high and always down to have a good time. His house is known as the party house where people randomly show up and start to drink and sleep around without even getting his permission first. Why would they need it? That Adrian is a lie. Adrian gets high to mask the pain of losing someone near and dear to his heart. He finds himself in bed with random women in hopes of feeling good for even a second of his life. He allows the parties because the noise drowns out the voices in his head. Adrian is a sinking ship and he knows it. He doesn't know how to find his way back to reality so he wallows in his suffering. Until Delaney sneaks past his defenses and makes him feel things he had thought he would never feel again.

Delaney is an eternal optimist. She believes that she can right her father's wrongs if she is determined enough. Her mother hates her for how close Delaney was with her father before that tragic day when he was taken away from them. Her mother continues to harbor ill will toward her despite Delaney's attempts to make everything right. She hopes if she can apologize to Adrian for her father's role in his tragedy that everyone's lives can get better. But as she gets closer to Adrian she starts to wonder if telling him will solve anything. She doesn't know if she should risk the budding relationship the two are forming by revealing her awful truth.

Can Delaney's ever present optimism bring the downtrodden Adrian into the light once more or will she ruin everything and would the man even more?

I absolutely adored Delaney and Adrian's story. I didn't know how Delaney was ever going to tell Adrian what her father did after they started to find a connection between each other. I thought that once Delaney told her secret, Adrian would be gone. Now, of course, romance novels rarely ever end that way but I was worried. I knew if some guy's father was the source of all my heartache, I'd have a hard time not holding that against the guy I was interested in.

As I stated before, I really didn't care for Adrian when he was introduced in Charade. But I hoped that I would grow to like him as I got to know him a little better. My opinion of him did a complete 180. I found him to be the most charismatic male lead even with sexy, cocky Colt as his competition. Adrian was so wounded and destroyed I just wanted to wrap him in bubble wrap so he'd never hurt again.

Delaney's optimism was a little annoying at times. I don't know what my issue is with the female protagonists in this series. I don't outright hate them but there is always something about them that I find a little tedious. However, Delaney's peppy-ness didn't take away from my love of the story.

Facade is hands down one of the most harrowing love story I have read. My heart felt a little worn after reading it.

Review: Charade by Nyrae Dawn

Charade by Nyrae Dawn

Series: Games #1

Publication date: October 22nd, 2012

Pages: 345

Synopsis (according to Goodreads):

Nineteen-year-old Cheyenne tries to portray the perfect life to mask the memories of her past. Walking in on her boyfriend with another woman her freshman year in college threatens that picture of perfection.

Twenty-one-year-old Colt never wanted college and never expected to amount to anything, but when his mom's dying wish is for him to get his degree, he has no choice but to pretend it's what he wants too.

Cheyenne needs a fake boyfriend to get back at her ex and Colt needs cash to take care of his mom, so they strike a deal that helps them both. But what if Cheyenne's past isn't what she thought? Soon they're trading one charade for another--losing themselves in each other to forget about their pain. The more they play their game, the more it becomes the only thing they have that feels real.

Both Cheyenne and Colt know life is never easy, but neither of them expect the tragedy that threatens to end their charade and rip them apart forever.

Available at:

Review:

I am extremely unsure of this book simply based on cover appeal. This cover kind of looks like something I could have thrown together myself on my graphic software. But, determined not to be one of those readers, I decided to give it a shot anyway. What is the worst that could happen?

Cheyenne has more issues than any normal protagonist. Not only does she have abandonment issues, anxiety attacks, and a narcissistic determination to always be seen a certain way, but she also just got cheated on by her long-term boyfriend. Well, if that doesn't make a girl question everything and try to reevaluate her life, I don't know what would. Cheyenne is dead-set on being seen as fine. She doesn't want anyone to ever see how weak she truly is and in that mentality she decides she needs to find a fake boyfriend so her ex and his new woman know she has moved on. She doesn't want anyone's pity so when she sees a guy hassling her ex-boyfriend at her coffee shop sanctuary, she knows exactly who she wants to fill the role of her fake boyfriend. Not to mention from the guy's appearance, she is sure he could use the money she's willing to pay for his services.

Colt is nobody's charity case. So when Cheyenne approaches him and offers him money to pretend to be her boyfriend, he lets her know in no uncertain terms that he is not interested. But with a dying mom he starts to consider whether pretending to be the "Princess's" fake boyfriend wouldn't be a small price to pay for the cash he desperately needs.

A bargain is struck. Colt and Cheyenne pretend to be together but soon the act becomes less of a charade and more of a reality.

I absolutely loved Colt. He was just enough of an asshole to make me want to kick him while also wanting to swoon all over him when he had his sweet moments. I found myself a little annoyed with Cheyenne's desperation to appear unaffected and detached so people didn't know anything was wrong with her. Someone being that fixated on the public eye makes me think of them as a little shallow. I love how Colt tries to break her of that problem. Colt and Cheyenne seem to bring out the best in each other. They went through hell and back side by side and found a way to make it work when most couples in reality would have given up and shoved their significant others away. These two were a match made in literary heaven.

Charade is a new adult read that shows the power of love and what two people can overcome when they have it.