May 1, 2015

Mikky's Shelf: Book of the Month featuring A. Meredith Walters, Emma Chase, Abigail Roux & Madeleine Urban, Paige Weaver and Garrett Leigh

Hey guys!! 

I've decided to make a recap of all the books I've read in April and make a top five, sharing my opinions of every book. I also want to hear what you think so, feel free to comment and tell what was the highlight of your month and what would you recommend to others. 

On the 5th place is Only Love by Leigh Garrett


The diagnosis of a chronic stomach condition leaves thirty-two-year-old Sergeant Jed Cooper with little choice but to call time on his Army career. Then on the dusty streets of Kirkuk, an ambush gone tragically wrong decimates his team, and he returns to the US with a shattered leg and the memory of his best friend dying in his arms.

Life in his sleepy hometown proves intolerable until he finds solace in a lakeside cabin with vivacious young carpenter, Max O’Dair. In the shadow of the epilepsy that periodically plagues Max, he and Jed form an unspoken bond. After a late night episode, Jed realizes how much Max means to him, and life has taught him not to waste time.

But the lines between contentment and complacency are blurred. Things left hidden resurface to tear through their world, and before they can repair the damage, death comes to call again. Faces, past and present, rally around them to weather the storm, but before long, they are left with only love.

Genre: M/M Romance, Contemporary, Military

My thoughts- Only Love is the story of two damaged souls finding solace in each other. Jed and Max have been through so much and seen to much in their lives and the marks left on their souls and on their psyche will never be erased. But those marks are what makes them special and what brings them together. Their story will bring tears to your eyes more than once but it will also show that there's always hope, there's always a reason to fight even when we don't see it beyond the hurt and the pain. I really liked it and I can't wait to read the next book. 


On the 4th place is Promise Me Once by Paige Weaver

Once with him was never enough.



I am the girl you dislike. The girl you snub at parties. I am the one who flirts with men and knows no boundaries. I am the one you whisper about. The one who has no rules. I am the one who takes and uses without any regret or excuses.



On the outside I am perfect. I have money, looks, and a personality that makes people stand up and take notice, but on the inside I am broken and hurting.



Then I met Cash Marshall.



He wasn’t what I needed, but I wanted him anyway. It was Cash’s carved, muscular body I thought about. It was his cool, confident touch I craved. I swore he would only be a one-night stand, another distraction to take away the pain.

But then our world changed.

Our story is not about love. Love is pretty and sweet and full of niceties. Those no longer exist. Our story is about finding each other again in a world gone crazy. It’s about surviving the impossible when war ravaged our land. It’s about saving each other from the darkness and finding out just how strong we could be.

And maybe, just maybe, along the way, we’ll find love…

Once and for all.

Genre: Dystopian, Romance, New Adult

My thoughts- Promise Me Once is the third and final book in the Promise Me series. These books are among the top 10 on my favorites list. Paige brings us into a world where every single thing we take for granted everyday is taken away at the switch of a button and to survive, the characters are forced to return to the old ways. They'll have to be strong and smart and learn to adjust or be collateral damage in a world gone mad. 
Lets just say that this story is a little bit of an eye opener, at least for me. It made me think about what would I do? How would I survive? I wasn't happy with the answers to those questions. 
I highly recommend it but it cannot be read as a a stand alone. You'll have to start from book one, Promise Me Darkness.

Here you can read my reviews for Promise Me Light and Promise Me Once



Special Agents Ty Grady and Zane Garrett are back on the job, settled into a personal and professional relationship built on fierce protectiveness and blistering passion. Now they're assigned to impersonate two members of an international smuggling ring-an out-and-proud married couple-on a Christmas cruise in the Caribbean. As their boss says, surely they'd rather kiss each other than be shot at, and he has no idea how right he is. Portraying the wealthy criminals requires a particular change in attitude from Ty and Zane while dealing with the frustrating waiting game of their assignment. As it begins to affect how they treat each other in private, Ty and Zane realize there's more to being partners than watching each other's backs, and when the case takes an unexpected turn and threatens Ty's life, Ty and Zane will have to navigate seas of white lies and stormy secrets, including some of their own.





Genre: M/M Romance, Contemporary, Suspense, Mystery, Adult



My thoughts- Ty and Zane are the bane of my existence. LOL. This guys are driving me up a freakin' wall. One moment I want to hug them and the next I want to smack them because they frustrate the hell out of me.  

I picked out the first volume out of curiosity because everyone was singing it's praise and I'm more curious than a cat when it comes to books.
Being a debut novel it was a little bit of a challenge to get through it due to the constantly head hopping but the story was great and I fell in love with Ty on the spot. Guy's all kinds of nuts. Zane's the kind of character that you kind of dislike when you first meet him because he seems so stuck up but, later, you realize you were so very wrong in judging him.
Their relationship is ... complicated. Yes, I know, it sounds like a cliche but it's not. Those two give the word complicated a whole new definition. It's not the "I'm gay and I'm afraid what others might think" thing. They have too many issues and insecurities that they're unable to see what's right in front of them.
And, God, the trouble they get themselves into... 
This series gets better and better with every book and the writing style improves considerably by the second book. I can see it becoming one of my favorites and I still have six books to go. Great job!


On the 2nd place is Overruled by Emma Chase

Emma Chase, New York Times bestselling author of the Tangled Series, returns with the first installment of the Legal Briefs Series. 

As a DC defense attorney, Stanton Shaw keeps his head cool, his questions sharp, and his arguments irrefutable. They don’t call him the Jury Charmer for nothing – with his southern drawl, disarming smile and captivating green eyes – he’s a hard man to say no to. Men want to be him and women want to be thoroughly cross examined by him.

Stanton’s a man with a plan. And for a while, life was going according to that plan.

Until the day he receives an invitation to the wedding of his high school sweetheart and mother of his beloved ten-year old daughter. Jenny is getting married — to someone who isn’t him.

That's definitely not part of the plan.
***
Sofia Santos is a city raised, no-nonsense litigator who plans to become the most revered criminal defense attorney in the country. She doesn’t have time for relationships or distractions.

But when Stanton, her "friend with mind-blowing benefits" begs for help, she finds herself out of her element, out of her depth, and obviously out of her mind. Because she agrees to go with him – to The-Middle-Of-Nowhere, Mississippi – to do all she can to help Stanton win back the woman he loves. 

Her head tells her she's crazy...and her heart says something else entirely.
*** 
What happens when you mix a one stop-light town, two professional arguers, a homecoming queen, four big brothers, some Jimmy Dean sausage and a gun-toting Nana? 

The Bourbon flows, passions rise and even the best laid plans get overruled by the desires of the heart.

Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Adult, 

My thoughts- God, I don't even know where to begin. I'm addicted to Emma's books. I just about devoured Tangled and now this. Emma writes beautifully. Her characters are strong, charismatic, smart and funny as hell. It's impossible to read her books and not laugh your head off.
I was afraid that after Tangled nothing she writes will be good enough or at least as good as that series. Boy, was I wrong. You'll love Stanton and Sofia, I promise! Just, go for it!

Read my review HERE.


And we have reached the first place. The book that totally blew me away was....



You may notice me, but you will never know me.
I prefer it that way.
I am the daughter of a monster.
Born from blood and lies.
Dead before I have truly lived.
But Elian tells me that I'm different. 
He tells me that I'm beautiful.
That I'm an enigma wrapped in irresistibly complicated skin.
Elian says that he loves me.
These words terrify me.
I can't trust love.
Or hope.
Or truth.
Because I fear the beast inside.
It threatens to drown Elian and his sweet, unconditional love.
It's a beast that will destroy everything.

*This is a psychological thriller and very different than my previous books*

Genre: Psychological Thriller, Suspense, Adult, Dark Romance

My thoughts- Meredith is one of the authors whose books I'll pick up the second they've been published because she is that good. This lady has yet to disappoint me and I've read everything she's written so far. She can switch from one genre to another flawlessly and you'll always end up loving her stories.
The Contradiction of Solitude was a complete surprise and so unlike anything she's written before. 
It's hard to describe it without getting into details and I don't want to do that. I'll just say that this is one of the books that you HAVE to read. 
See my review HERE.



No comments: