A Special Announcement from Cora Carmack!

From New York Times bestselling author Cora Carmack, comes the highly anticipated fourth standalone title in her Rusk University Series, ALL CLOSED OFF! A passionate story and journey, get ready to be mesmerized with Stella’s story! ALL CLOSED OFF is coming your way May 1, 2017!

Stella Santos is fine.

Maybe something terrible happened to her that she can’t even remember. And maybe it drives her crazy when her friends treat her like she’s on the verge of breaking because of it. Maybe it feels even worse when they do what she asks and pretend that it never happened at all. And maybe she’s been getting harassing emails and messages for months from people who don’t even know her, but hate her all the same.

But none of that matters because she’s just fine.

For Ryan Blake, Stella was always that girl. Vibrant and hilarious and beautiful. He wanted her as his best friend. His more than friends. His everything and anything that she would give him. Which these days is a whole lot of nothing. She gets angry when he’s there. Angry when he’s not there. Angry when he tries to talk and when he doesn’t.

When Stella devises an unconventional art project for one of her classes all about exploring intimacy—between both friends and strangers—Ryan finds himself stepping in as guinea pig after one of her subjects bails. What was supposed to be an objective and artistic look at emotion and secrets and sex suddenly becomes much more personal. When he hits it off with another girl from the project, Stella will have to decide if she’s willing to do more than make art about intimacy. To keep him, she’ll have to open up and let herself be the one thing she swore she’d never be again.

Vulnerable.

Cover Design and Photography by Kelsey Kukal-Keeton at K. Keeton Designs

     

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Don’t Miss All of Cora’s Standalone Rusk University Series Titles!

 

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Cora Carmack is a twentysomething New York Times bestselling author who likes to write about twentysomething characters. Raised in a small Texas town, she now lives in New York City and spends her time writing, traveling, and marathoning various TV shows on Netflix. She lives by one rule: embrace whatever the world throws at you and run with it (just not with scissors).        

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ARC Review: Silenced by Leddy Harper

Summary: As a young child, Killian Foster survives the unimaginable. Silenced and scarred, he keeps to himself, spending his time with his notebook in the woods behind his aunt’s house. 

Until Rylee Anderson…

When Rylee spots Killian hopping over a fence next door, she follows him, unprepared for the boy she’d find—or the relationship that would unfold over the next seven years.

Or the silence that would follow.

Fighting between the hate of his past and the promise of his future, Killian must make choices—ones that would affect more than himself. Choices that would test the lines of right and wrong. Decisions that could break the bond of the only love Killian knew.

Hate or love.
Revenge or forgiveness.
Silence or his voice. (Via Goodreads.com)

Release Date: February 22nd, 2017

Rating: 2/5 Stars

Review:
  

I was fortunate enough to receive an advanced copy of Silenced from Social Butterfly PR. I knew nothing about Silenced prior to starting it; however, the beginning of the novel completely captured my attention. I fell in love with the characters and their story until half way through the novel. The second half of the novel felt completely different from the first half in an unpleasant way. The characters were completely different and none of their actions were justifiable. It felt as though the author had started one story and halfway through she decided to write a new story with characters that shared very few similarities with the characters from the original novel. 

I could easily rate the first half of Silenced a four point five or higher star rating out of five. The novel captured the development of friendship and the struggles of growing up perfectly. The beginning of Silenced also wove together a beautiful love story and a couple that was one of my absolute favorites. The second half of Silenced completely wrecked my love for the first half. As I stated previously, none of the characters were remotely similar to their characters in the first half. Normally that could be understandable due to development and age, but the growth of the characters was not in a positive direction. Some of the actions they made were despicable and unjustifiable under any circumstances, yet the characters never showed any remorse or reviewed those choices later on. The characters were not meant to be antiheroes, yet the choices they made were disgusting and never apologized for. These were characters who started out as fantastic individuals who I would love to befriend to individuals I would never want to associate with.

The development of new characters and plot lines also lacked. One new character was unnecessarily made out to be a villain even though poor decisions in their past could have been a one time ordeal. While I do not want to name this character or dive into spoilers, the past actions of this character are horrendous and should not be viewed any other way; however, his overall character should have been incorporated into the story another way. I disliked the way the characters were brought into the story and the character was unnecessarily developed into a completely horrible person. While their actions should never be condoned, it was unnecessary to develop them with certain issues. Some people are just horrible, there are not always explanations or 'root' problems that made them the way they are. Also, numerous plot lines in the second half were so clear that it was laughable. They were so easy to discern. 

I felt so betrayed by Silenced. I absolutely loved the first half of the novel. I felt countless emotions for the characters as they grew and developed only to have those characters demolished by the second half of the novel. I thought I had discovered a new favorite author, but I cannot overlook the second half of Silenced. At the moment I have no desire to try another novel by Leddy Harper. 

The beginning of Silenced gave me so much hope that I had found a new favorite novel. I felt so many emotions and such a close connection with the character, but the second half just left me angry and unsatisfied. I wish I could forget the second half existed and just pretend the novel ended there or that the second half was completely cut out except for the last two chapters. 

Silenced received numerous four and five stars on Goodreads, so you might enjoy the novel; however, I would not recommend it. I cannot truly convey how betrayed I feel. I became so attached to these characters only for them to be ripped away and ruined. I considered putting down Silenced and never returning to it, but I had to finish it and I regret not putting it down. The love I had for the beginning of this novel is gone, it is overshadowed by the second half of the novel. I was kind enough to give Silenced a two out of five stars because I still cannot forget that I loved the first half of the novel. 

Release Blitz: Dear Agony by Georgia Cates

            Dear Agony,

You've been my shadow, following me through childhood—filling my days and nights with terror and uncertainty. You cleverly disguised yourself as some form of pain or suffering as I grew into a young woman. We were unwavering companions … until I severed our ties.

I traded homelessness on the streets of New Orleans for a luxurious bed covered by the finest linens.

I traded dumpster diving for dinner in the finest restaurants.

I traded myself to a stranger—Bastien Pascal.

I have a good life within my platonic and mutually beneficial companionship with Bash.

He’s my friend. My mentor. My roommate.

Until everything changes.

I’m not supposed to get goosebumps when his hand brushes my skin.

I’m not supposed to be eager for his soothing touch following one of my nightmares.

I’m not supposed to think about what might happen if I reached out to him in the darkness.

Falling in love with him? Preposterous . . . unavoidable.

Agony, why are you back with a vengeance to rob me of this life I’ve come to love so dearly?

I’m finally happy. Don’t ruin this for me.

Always yours,

Rose

In this epic love story, Dear Agony forges a connection between an unlikely pair—a beautiful rose entwined in barbed wire and a shipwreck sinking into the darkest depths of the ocean. This agonizing romantic novel poses some gut-wrenching questions: What does a woman do when the man she loves is planning his own demise? And how far will she go to give him something to live for?

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AMAZON

         

Chapter 14

Bastien’s POV

Bringing Rose on at PPI has proven to be one of my best decisions ever. Not only is she the best assistant I could have hired, I get to have her near me all of the time. Win-win.

But not everyone is happy about Rose’s employment at the firm. Wendy is less than thrilled, but I’m proud of the way Rose handles herself. Kill her with kindness. That’s Rose’s MO where Wendy is concerned, yet she has this clever way of putting the woman in her place.

Rose is sitting on my office sofa. She’s in deep concentration reading the paperwork for PPI’s newest property so she doesn’t notice me looking over to steal glances at her.

That red dress fits her like a glove, showing just the right amount of leg. And those mile-high leopard-print heels . . . hot, hot, hot. I love having her at the office with me, but damn, she makes it hard to concentrate, especially when she’s working in my office instead of hers.

She looks up from the paperwork and opens her mouth to speak but stops when she catches me ogling her. She smiles and her brow wrinkles. “What?”

I shake my head. “I didn’t say anything.”

“I know. Why are you looking at me like that?”

I’m curious to hear how she perceives the way I watch her. “What kind of way am I looking at you?”

Her smile deepens and she glances away. “Never mind.” 

“I want to know. How am I looking at you?”

She glances over at me and then down again. “Like you want something.” 

The woman couldn’t be more right. I do want something. Her. “What do you think I want?”

She tilts her head to the side and grins as she nibbles her bottom lip. That lip I want to suck into my mouth and then bite and kiss at the same time because I can’t decide which I’d rather do. 

“Tell me. What do you think I want?” I’m curious to see how far I can take this conversation. How much I can get her to admit about the way she interprets my gaze. She might be inexperienced, but surely she can see I want her. 

Rose is so different from any other woman I’ve ever wanted. She’s delicate. Fragile. Innocent. She doesn’t know how to play the seduction game, yet she has seduced my heart, body, and soul. 

I need her. 

 I want her. 

 I love her.

Georgia resides in rural Mississippi with her wonderful husband, Jeff, and their two beautiful daughters. She spent fourteen years as a labor and delivery nurse before she decided to pursue her dream of becoming an author and hasn’t looked back yet.

When she’s not writing, she’s thinking about writing. When she’s being domestic, she’s listening to her iPod and visualizing scenes for her current work in progress. Every story coming from her always has a song to inspire it. 

Representation: All questions regarding subsidiary rights for any of my books, inquiries regarding foreign translation and film rights should be directed to Jane Dystel of Dystel & Goderich.

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Blog Tour: If You Were Mine by Melanie Harlow

If You Were Mine, an all-new sexy and emotional standalone from USA Today Bestselling author Melanie Harlow is now available!

If You Were Mine

by Melanie Harlow

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Theo MacLeod wasn’t supposed to be the one.

Tall, dark and handsome suits me just fine, but the cocky grin, know-it-all attitude, and mammoth ego? No thanks. I only hired him so I wouldn’t have to sit at the singles table again. It was just pretend.

He wasn’t supposed to kiss me.

My heart wasn’t supposed to pound.

We weren’t supposed to spend the night together—the hottest night of my life.

One night turns into a snowed-in weekend away, and even the blizzard of the century can’t cool the fire between us. I can’t get enough—of his smile, of his body, of the way he makes me feel.

We’re nothing alike. He’s a daredevil, and I’m a nervous Nellie. He’s a drifter, and I want to put down roots. He’s an opportunist with a checkered past, and I’m a Girl Scout volunteer.

But none of it matters when I’m in his arms.

I know he’s made mistakes. I know his wounds are deep, and he doesn’t trust easily. I know he doesn’t believe he could ever be enough to make me happy, but he could.

All he has to do is stay.

 

A guy in a black leather jacket set a coffee cup down on the table and sat opposite me.

I looked over at him, feeling slightly awkward since I’d have to tell him he couldn’t sit there. He was handsome, with warm brown eyes and short dark hair, but he wasn’t Fred. “I’m sorry, I’m waiting for someone,” I said. “But I can move.”

To my surprise, he smiled confidently. “Claire, right? I’m Fred.”

I screwed up my face. “You can’t be. Fred has blond hair and blue eyes. I saw his picture.”

He laughed, almost condescendingly. “I don’t use my real picture, Claire. People are crazy.”

What? This made no sense. “I don’t understand. How can you advertise yourself with someone else’s photo? Don’t women get mad when you show up?”

He shrugged, his grin turning a little cocky. “Haven’t had any complaints so far.”

Actually, he was more attractive than the photo he’d used online—more rugged and masculine, with his scruffy jaw, big shoulders, and brawny chest. Meeting the real Fred was kind of like ordering the chicken piccata and being brought the Porterhouse, which hadn’t even been on the menu.

But that wasn’t the point.

(And I’d described someone completely different to Elyse.)

“So, what, you use a fake photo to lure potential clients and then you set up the coffee meeting to check them out first?” I asked indignantly.

“Wouldn’t you?” He shrugged out of his jacket. “It’s a scary world out there.”

I crossed my arms, sitting up tall. “No! That’s a scam. I don’t like scammers.”

“No, it isn’t. I don’t take any money from them. I don’t even talk to them, I just leave.”

Frowning, I said, “That doesn’t seem right to me. These people are willing to pay you to hang out with them and probably feel bad enough about themselves already, and you just walk out without even giving them a chance?”

He shrugged. “Look, if it makes you feel any better, I’ve only walked off a job once, and that was because I thought I recognized the woman. I prefer to keep my personal and professional identities separate. That’s fair, isn’t it?”

Professional identity? He was a rent-a-date! I shook my head in disbelief. “Is your name even Fred?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes,” I snapped. “How am I supposed to know what to call you?”

He grinned as he leaned toward me and lowered his voice. “Call me anything you want. You’re the boss.”

Was he flirting with me or making fun of me? I cleared my throat and pressed my knees tighter together. “I’d like to call you by your actual name, please. Bad enough I have to pay someone to play my fake boyfriend. I’d like something to be real, at least.”

He held his eyes steady on mine for a moment. I felt like he was sizing me up, trying to decide if he could trust me, so I stared right back without blinking. If anyone at this table was trustworthy, it was me.

“Theo,” he said quietly, his eyes dropping to my lips for the merest fraction of a second. “My name is Theo.”

There. Was that so hard? I smiled at him before picking up my latte.“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Theo.”

“What, you’re just going to believe me? You’re much too trusting, Claire. I bet people take advantage of you.”

I set the cup back down on the saucer with an angry clank. “Is your name Theo or not?”

“Shhh, it is, it is,” he said, laughing. Then he glanced over his shoulder like he was in the fucking CIA. “But I don’t give that out to just anyone. You should feel special.”

Read Today!

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2kyu7kK

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Melanie Harlow likes her martinis dry, her heels high, and her history with the naughty bits left in. When she's not writing or reading, she gets her kicks from TV series like VEEP, Game of Thrones, House of Cards, and Homeland. She occasionally runs three miles, but only so she can have more gin and steak. Melanie is the author of the HAPPY CRAZY LOVE series, the FRENCHED series, and the sexy historical SPEAK EASY duet, set in the 1920s. She lifts her glass to romance readers and writers from her home near Detroit, MI, where she lives with her husband, two daughters, and pet rabbit.

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