Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Protagonists

Hey guys! Happy Mardi Gras!

It's Top Ten Tuesday by The Broke and The Bookish! This feature is actually on hiatus until next week, but...I'm lazy and am doing this solo this week. ;) 

Today I want to do some of my favorite protagonists. Let's jump in!

10. Jake

I'm actually really picky when it comes to the male POV, especially when the author is a woman. Some people really can't pull it off, but Emma Chase always does a great job!

9. Charley

She's just such a riot!

8. Mac

I have a love/hate relationship with Mac, but I do admire the massive character development she went through.

Plus, you know, Barrons.

7. Sophie and Gabriel 

6. Kate

Seriously, she's #goals. 

5. Cat

Cat is probably the character I connect with most in terms of personality.

4. Levee and Sam

This is such an underrated book, and I don't even know why. It is such an amazing story!

3. Delilah 

I found her both fascinating and highly relatable. I'm dying for book 2, and does anyone else want a romance between her and Gallagher? 

2. Matilda and Jay

Loved!

1. Ellie, Camden and Javier

This is an amazing trilogy. One of my very few 6 star reads. So screwed up, but so good!

Second Chances: Favorite Series I Almost Didn't Continue

Hey guys!

Today I want to share some of my favorite series, specifically the ones that I didn't really care for at first, but loved them after giving the series a chance with the second book. Let's jump right in!

I almost didn't pick the next book up, and now it's one of my top 5 favorite series. I may try rereading this one, to see if my initially thoughts were accurate or if I was just in a slump. 

The first two books in this series are really rough, in both typos and other technicalities, but the idea was so intriguing that I pushed through. I'm so glad I did, because Perry is one of the heroines I connect to most!

I know I'm not alone with how the first Kate book went!

It took me 3 weeks to finish this book. The others in the series? A day each.
Sidenote: last book comes out in April. I'm sad!

Not my favorite urban fantasy series (and I hate the covers), but it's still really fun to get back with Mercy and the crew, even if the first book was another weeks long read. 

This book was fun enough, but I much preferred books 2 and 3. 

What about you? Any series or authors you're happy you tried again?

The Sunday Post/It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

Hey ladies!

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. It's Monday, What Are You Reading is a fun weekly meme hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date where we share what we've read and reviewed over the past week and what we plan to read next. 

Work is really starting to kick off (vacation service industry), so it's been pretty busy! 


The pollen...oh my god, the pollen. I don't know if it's especially bad this year or if I'm just a lot more affected by it than usual, but it's been brutal. Constant headache, watery eyes, snotty nose, itchy throat, the whole nine yards. It's worse at night when it's more breezy out, and I'll admit to cutting the nighttime walks short on more than one occasion.


Still in a little bit of a slump when it comes to reading, but going back and listening to a few of old favorites is really helping. There's a few books set to release in March, and I'm so excited about them!

Fitness

Steps this week:

Sunday - 10,883

Monday - 11,506

Tuesday - 9,421

Wednesday - 8,935

Thursday - 7,917

Friday - 8,805

Saturday - 13,210

Total - 70,677

This Week's Recap

Little Book Haul!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Loved More (or Less!) Than I Thought I Would

Waiting on Wednesday

TBR Thursday

Cover Lust, No. 56

Coming Up

A Second Chance: Favorite Series I Almost Didn't Continue 

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Protagonists

Waiting on Wednesday 

TBR Thursday

Five Things Friday 

Read This Week

4 stars!
A pleasant surprise with a fantastic narration.
Audiobook

3 stars!
Eh...not great, not terrible.
Audiobook

Currently Reading

Rereading since I never listened to this one on audio.

What Will I Read Next?

??

Cover Lust, No. 56

The daughter of a prominent samurai, Mariko has long known her place—she may be an accomplished alchemist, whose cunning rivals that of her brother Kenshin, but because she is not a boy, her future has always been out of her hands. At just seventeen years old, Mariko is promised to Minamoto Raiden, the son of the emperor's favorite consort—a political marriage that will elevate her family's standing. But en route to the imperial city of Inako, Mariko narrowly escapes a bloody ambush by a dangerous gang of bandits known as the Black Clan, who she learns has been hired to kill her before she reaches the palace.

Dressed as a peasant boy, Mariko sets out to infiltrate the ranks of the Black Clan, determined to track down the person responsible for the target on her back. But she's quickly captured and taken to the Black Clan’s secret hideout, where she meets their leader, the rebel ronin Takeda Ranmaru, and his second-in-command, his best friend Okami. Still believing her to be a boy, Ranmaru and Okami eventually warm to Mariko, impressed by her intellect and ingenuity. As Mariko gets closer to the Black Clan, she uncovers a dark history of secrets, of betrayal and murder, which will force her to question everything she's ever known. 

I love the flower throwing stars, and I'm getting a bit of a Mulan retelling from that synopsis! 

TBR Thursday

Kimberly @ Kimberlyfaye Reads started a new weekly feature that I'm excited to join in! This feature is to showcase what's on your to be read shelf (or eReader, or Audible library) and see what others think of it. Have you read it? Should I read it or put it back on the shelf? It's a way to dust off the books on your self and decide if they're worth reading!

#1 Best Selling Romantic Comedy

--

From: LilyNBlack@Gmail.com
To: JosephineKeller@VogueMagazine.com
Subject: You're a flippin' idiot

Good morning my dear, naive friend,

I hope you're enjoying a breakfast of regret and sorrow.

Why?

Because you sent me to work for Dean Harper, aka a control freak in a tailor-made suit. Sure he owns the trendiest restaurants in NYC, but c'mon Jo, his ego makes Kanye West look like the Dalai Lama.

He's the type of guy that only hears the word "no" when it's followed by "don't stop."

Working for Dean Harper would be like selling my soul to the devil...and before you say anything, I don't care if the devil has punch-you-in-the-gut brown eyes and an ass to match. My soul isn't for sale.

Regretfully yours,
Lily

--

The Allure of Dean Harper is a standalone, contemporary romance from USA TODAY Bestselling author R.S. Grey with overlapping characters from The Allure of Julian Lefray. Both books can be read separately.

I'm always down for a good romantic comedy. Have you read this one?

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine and is a fun way to see what books other bloggers just can't wait to get their hands on!   

October 31st

Grim Reaper Charley Davidson is back in the twelfth installment of Darynda Jones’ New York Times bestselling paranormal series.

Ever since Reyes escaped from a hell dimension in which Charley accidently trapped him, the son of Satan has been brimstone-bent on destroying the world his heavenly Brother created. His volatile tendencies have put Charley in a bit of a pickle. But that’s not the only briny vegetable on her plate. While trying to domesticate the feral being that used to be her husband, she also has to deal with her everyday life of annoying all manner of beings—some corporeal, some not so much—as she struggles to right the wrongs of society. Only this time she’s not uncovering a murder. This time she’s covering one up.

Add to that her new occupation of keeping a startup PI venture—the indomitable mystery-solving team of Amber Kowalski and Quentin Rutherford—out of trouble and dealing with the Vatican’s inquiries into her beloved daughter, and Charley is on the brink of throwing in the towel and becoming a professional shopper. Or possibly a live mannequin. But when someone starts attacking humans who are sensitive to the supernatural world, Charley knows it’s time to let loose her razor sharp claws. Then again, her number one suspect is the dark entity she’s loved for centuries. So the question becomes, can she tame the unruly beast before it destroys everything she’s worked so hard to protect? 

I need more of this series in my life, especially after how book 11 left off!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Loved More (or Less!) Than I Expected To

Hey, guys!

It's Top Ten Tuesday by The Broke and The Bookish! This is actually the last official TTT until March 7th, though I may still do next week because I am #notcreative. This week's topic is 10 books you liked more or less than you were expecting to. Let's jump right int!

5 Books I Liked Less 

The first book went on my Best of 2016 list, and this book, at only 3 stars, was a big let down. 

Didn't like Nick. At all. 

First 4 books are probably some of my favorite guilty pleasure reads. This one was a train wreck, even compared to the other books. 

Sounded right up my alley, and wound up hating it. 

Synopsis was intriguing and loved the first third, but after that it tanked. 

5 Books I Liked More

I don't read memoirs; I find them dry and incredibly tedious. This, however, was incredible! So fun, so relatable, and just a blast. Highly recommend!

I'm not a big horror fan (at all) and had no idea what to think of a more romantic themed horror book, but this wound up being one of my all time favorite series. 

I wasn't expecting much from how cheesy this looks, but it was a solid 5 star read!

Didn't have the best luck with the first book I read from this author, but was pleasantly surprised here!

Normally not my thing, is now one of my all time favorites!

Little Book Haul!

Hey, guys!

Haven't done a haul in a while, plus I'm feeling throughly lazy. ;)

Goalie 
[goh-lee] 
noun 
a player in the goal whose duty is to prevent the ball from entering or crossing it 

See Santos and Mariana DeGuajarado 

As goalie of the Texas Mutiny, Santos is damn good at protecting that net. But he never bothered to protect his marriage. 

Letting the fame and notoriety go to his head, he lost the things he loved the most… his wife and kids. Now he has one shot to make it right before losing at this relationship game and he’s determined not to miss this time. 

Mariana has been scarred so deeply by Santos’s betrayals, she will carry the wounds forever. After almost ten years of marriage though, she knows him well, and she knows he won’t let go without a fight. Still, she refuses to be a push over. 

Because love is never enough… 

Single Dad. Second Chances. Meet Mack in the newest STANDALONE novel from New York Times bestselling author, Penelope Ward. 

They called him Mack Daddy. No, seriously, his name was Mack. Short for Mackenzie. Thus, the nickname. Perfect, right? 

So was he: perfect. The perfect physical male specimen.

At the private school where I taught, Mack Morrison was the only man around in a sea of women.

Everyone wanted a piece of the hot, single father of the sweet little boy. 

I became a woman I didn’t recognize, someone riddled with jealousy, because they didn’t know that—to me—he was much more. 

They didn’t know about our past. 

He’d chosen my school for his son on purpose, because Mack and I, we had unfinished business. 

As my friend, Lorelai, so eloquently put it: “Unfinished business between two people who are clearly attracted to each other is like an eternal case of blue balls.” And I was suffering in pain from my case.

I was still intensely attracted to Mack. I tried to resist him, immersing myself further into a relationship with someone else just to protect my heart. 

Not to mention, getting involved with a parent was strictly against school rules. But seeing Mack day in and day out was breaking me down.

And soon I might be breaking all the rules.

Author's note – Told in alternating points of view, Mack Daddy is a full-length standalone novel.

He’s Paxton Wilder.

Twenty-two-year-old, tattooed, smoking-hot leader of the Renegades.

Five time X Games medalist.

The world is his playground—especially this year—and for the next nine months I’m stuck as his tutor on the Study at Sea program.

He’s too busy staging worldwide stunts for his documentary to get to class.

But if I can’t get him to take academics seriously, I’ll lose my scholarship…if I don’t lose my heart first.

Six unlikely friends on a nine-month cruise with the Study at Sea program will learn that chemistry is more than a subject and the best lessons aren’t taught in the classroom…but in the heart.

Once in Africa, I kissed a king...

"And just like that, in an old red barn at the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, I discovered the elusive magic I had only ever glimpsed between the pages of great love stories. It fluttered around me like a newborn butterfly and settled in a corner of my heart. I held my breath, afraid to exhale for fear it would slip out, never to be found again.”

When a bomb explodes in a mall in East Africa, its aftershocks send two strangers on a collision course that neither one sees coming.

Jack Warden, a divorced coffee farmer in Tanzania, loses his only daughter. An ocean away, in the English countryside, Rodel Emerson loses her only sibling.

Two ordinary people, bound by a tragic afternoon, set out to achieve the extraordinary, as they make three stops to rescue three children across the vast plains of the Serengeti—children who are worth more dead than alive.

But even if they beat the odds, another challenge looms at the end of the line. Can they survive yet another loss—this time of a love that’s bound to slip through their fingers, like the mists that dissipate in the light of the sun?

“Sometimes you come across a rainbow story—one that spans your heart. You might not be able to grasp it or hold on to it, but you can never be sorry for the color and magic it brought.”

A blend of romance and women’s fiction, Mists of The Serengeti is inspired by true events and contains emotional triggers, including the death of a child. Not recommended for sensitive readers. Standalone, contemporary fiction. 

Ambrose Young was beautiful. He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was thirteen. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have...until he wasn't beautiful anymore.

Making Faces is the story of a small town where five young men go off to war, and only one comes back. It is the story of loss. Collective loss, individual loss, loss of beauty, loss of life, loss of identity. It is the tale of one girl's love for a broken boy, and a wounded warrior's love for an unremarkable girl. This is a story of friendship that overcomes heartache, heroism that defies the common definitions, and a modern tale of Beauty and the Beastwhere we discover that there is little beauty and a little beast in all of us. 

Beware the goblin men and the wares they sell.

All her life, nineteen-year-old Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, mysterious Goblin King. He is the Lord of Mischief, the Ruler Underground, and the muse around which her music is composed. Yet, as Liesl helps shoulder the burden of running her family’s inn, her dreams of composition and childish fancies about the Goblin King must be set aside in favor of more practical concerns.

But when her sister Käthe is taken by the goblins, Liesl journeys to their realm to rescue her sister and return her to the world above. The Goblin King agrees to let Käthe go—for a price. The life of a maiden must be given to the land, in accordance with the old laws. A life for a life, he says. Without sacrifice, nothing good can grow. Without death, there can be no rebirth. In exchange for her sister’s freedom, Liesl offers her hand in marriage to the Goblin King. He accepts.

Down in the Underground, Liesl discovers that the Goblin King still inspires her—musically, physically, emotionally. Yet even as her talent blossoms, Liesl’s life is slowly fading away, the price she paid for becoming the Goblin King’s bride. As the two of them grow closer, they must learn just what it is they are each willing to sacrifice: her life, her music, or the end of the world

Lucas Thatcher has always been my enemy.

It’s been a decade since I’ve seen him, but our years on opposite coasts were less of a lasting peace and more of a temporary cease-fire. Now that we’re both back in our small town, I know Lucas expects the same old war, but I’ve changed since high school—and from the looks of it, so has he.

The arrogant boy who was my teenage rival is now a chiseled doctor armed with intimidating good looks. He is Lucas Thatcher 2.0, the new and improved version I’ll be competing with in the workplace instead of the schoolyard.

I’m not worried; I’m a doctor now too, board-certified and sexy in a white coat. It almost feels like winning will be too easy—until Lucas unveils a tactic neither of us has ever used before: sexual warfare.

The day he pushes me up against the wall and presses his lips to mine, I can’t help but wonder if he’s filling me with passion or poison. Every fleeting touch is perfect torture. With every stolen kiss, my walls crumble a little more. After all this time, Lucas knows exactly how to strip me of my defenses, but I’m in no hurry to surrender.

Knowing thy enemy has never felt so good.

Third book in the USA Today Bestselling Romantic Comedy Series

Keeping a secret this big is going to take lots of balls. Specifically, rugby balls. 

THE CAD
Bryan Leech is a cad.
Or, he *was* a cad.
No one is quite certain.
Once the quintessential playboy, Bryan claims he’s done with wild parties and weekend benders. No more one night stands leading to mornings he can’t remember; no more binges and blackouts; no more exploits plastered all over the tabloids and rag sheets. According to Bryan, he’s cleaning up his act.
The only problem is, no one believes him.

THE CO-ED
Eilish Cassidy never thought she’d be a mother at nineteen or still in college at twenty-four. Cut off from every member of her family except her favorite cousin, she’s finally managed to put her life back together. Stronger and wiser, Eilish enters her last semester of university determined to stand on her own. Now she just needs to find an internship.
The only problem is, her best option—by far—places her directly in the path of her son’s father, and he doesn’t remember her at all.

THE PLAN
Bryan is determined to prove he’s changed. Eager to settle down with the right woman, he’s got his sights set on the gorgeous redhead who seems terribly familiar.
Eilish is determined to hide her secret. She’ll do anything to keep her child safe, even if that means ignoring her own wishes and desires.
But what happens when Bryan starts to remember? And what will it take for Bryan to convince the girl he forgot that she’s unforgettable? 

The Sunday Post/It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

Hey, everyone!

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead. It's Monday, What Are You Reading is a fun weekly meme hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date where we share what we've read and reviewed over the past week and what we plan to read next. 


Spring is official here, which means pollen everywhere. Everywhere. On the car, on the roof, caking sidewalk cracks...everywhere. The headaches and sinus pressure is just awful!

I think I'm in a bit of a reading slump. I want to read, but nothing but my current audiobook is holding my attention. Hoping to get the reading mojo back this week!

Fitness

Steps this week:

Sunday - 12,866

Monday - 12,613

Tuesday - 12,666

Wednesday - 11,429

Thursday - 8,638

Friday - 11,865

Saturday - 14,640

Total - 84,717

This Week's Recap

Mini Reviews Monday

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Romantic Themes

Waiting on Wednesday

TBR Thursday

Cover Lust, No. 55

Coming Up

Mini Reviews Monday

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Loved More (and Less!) Than I Thought I Would

Waiting on Wednesday

TBR Thursday

Five Things Friday 

Read This Week

4-ish stars!

3 stars!
A bit of a let down after how amazing the first book was!

Currently Reading

I have about 4 hours left in this audiobook, and I'm actually really enjoying it!

What Will I Read Next?

Not a clue!

Cover Lust, No. 55

Ever since she used the Firebird, her parents' invention, to cross into alternate dimensions, Marguerite has caught the attention of enemies who will do anything to force her into helping them dominate the multiverse—even hurting the people she loves. She resists until her boyfriend, Paul, is attacked and his consciousness scattered across multiple dimensions. 

Marguerite has no choice but to search for each splinter of Paul’s soul. The hunt sends her racing through a war-torn San Francisco, the criminal underworld of New York City, and a glittering Paris where another Marguerite hides a shocking secret. Each world brings Marguerite one step closer to rescuing Paul. But with each trial she faces, she begins to question the destiny she thought they shared. 

The second book in the Firebird trilogy, Ten Thousand Skies Above You features Claudia Gray’s lush, romantic language and smart, exciting action, and will have readers clamoring for the next book.

It's just so pretty!

TBR Thursday

Kimberly @ Kimberlyfaye Reads started a new weekly feature that I'm excited to join in! This feature is to showcase what's on your to be read shelf (or eReader, or Audible library) and see what others think of it. Have you read it? Should I read it or put it back on the shelf? It's a way to dust off the books on your self and decide if they're worth reading!

The USA TODAY bestselling author of the Ten Tiny Breaths series and Burying Water—which Kirkus Reviews called “a sexy, romantic, gangster-tinged page-turner”—returns with a new novel packed with romance, plot twists, and psychological suspense.

Ivy, a talented tattoo artist who spent the early part of her twenties on the move, is finally looking for a place to call home. She thinks she might have found it in San Francisco, but all that changes when she witnesses a terrible crime. She’s ready to pack up her things yet again, when a random encounter with a stranger keeps her in the city, giving her reason to stay after all.

That is, until Ivy discovers that their encounter wasn’t random. Not at all…

I've enjoyed Burying Water and Chasing River, but haven't continued with this series. Should I pick this one up?

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking The Spine and is a fun way to see what books other bloggers just can't wait to get their hands on!   

February 21st

Some men are born responsible, some men have responsibility thrust upon them. Henry John Edgar Thomas Pembrook, Prince of Wessco, just got the motherlode of all responsibility dumped in his regal lap.

He’s not handling it well.

Hoping to help her grandson to rise to the occasion, Queen Lenora agrees to give him "space"—but while the Queen’s away, the Prince will play. After a chance meeting with an American television producer, Henry finally makes a decision all on his own:

Welcome to Matched: Royal Edition. 

A reality TV dating game show featuring twenty of the world's most beautiful blue bloods gathered in the same castle. Only one will win the diamond tiara, only one will capture the handsome prince’s heart.

While Henry revels in the sexy, raunchy antics of the contestants as they fight, literally, for his affection, it’s the quiet, bespectacled girl in the corner—with the voice of an angel and a body that would tempt a saint—who catches his eye.

The more Henry gets to know Sarah Mirabelle Zinnia Von Titebottum, the more enamored he becomes of her simple beauty, her strength, her kind spirit... and her naughty sense of humor.

But Rome wasn’t built in a day—and irresponsible royals aren’t reformed overnight. 

As he endeavors to right his wrongs, old words take on whole new meanings for the dashing Prince. Words like, Duty, Honor and most of all—Love.

I cannot wait for this one! I absolutely loved Henry and am so curious to see what happens with him.