My Favorite Book Couple with Samanthe Beck

Wine lover, sleep lover, and USA Today bestselling author Samanthe Beck lives in Malibu, California with her husband, their son, Kitty the furry Ninja, and Bebe the trash talkin’ Chihuahua. When not writing fun, fan-your-cheeks sexy contemporary romances, she searches for the perfect cabernet to pair with Ambien.

Places to find Samanthe: 

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Review: I Found You by Jane Lark

I Found You is the first book I have read by Jane Lark. This one really drew me in with the cover and the blurb. I ended up having mixed feelings about this book. There were some things that I really liked, but I had some trouble with quite a few things in this one. I thought that this book started off really well and I was really interested right off. But as the book went on things sort of fell apart for me.

One cold winter night while Jason is running, he comes across a woman on the Manhattan Bridge. Rachel is about ready to jump, but Jason ends up convincing her not to jump and instead to get down. With nowhere to go, Jason offers to let her stay at his place while she gets back on her feet. Rachel eventually agrees and ends up staying at his place. Jason is determined to help her get past whatever she is running from. Jason has a fiance back in Oregon, but things between them aren't the same as they used to be. Both his fiance and his parents are skeptical of Rachel and her intentions, but they don't know Rachel like Jason does. As the two of them spend more time together they grow close and both feel a connection between them unlike anything they have experienced before. Soon they are unable to fight the growing feelings between them, and Jason decides he needs to end things with his fiance back home. With Jason just ending his relationship and Rachel still suffering from things from her past, the two of them have a lot of obstacles standing in their way. But with a connection as strong as theirs, they are determined to figure out a way to make things work.

I liked Jason. He was sweet and caring, protective and kind. I liked what a good guy he was and how he was willing to help a total stranger. He went out of his way to help Rachel out and didn't have any ulterior motives. I also loved how he stood up for her against everyone that he knew because he believed in her and saw the good in her. I did think that he should have ended things with the fiance long before he did, especially considering that his feelings for her had already started to change before Rachel. It didn't really make sense that he had stayed with her for so long. Rachel was strong and honest, and I was glad to see that she was exactly who she appeared to be. She never tried to pull one over on anybody and always told the truth about everything, including her less than perfect past. It was really refreshing to see such a young character really be open about everything like she was. I also really liked how supportive she was of Jason all along. She was willing to stand up to his family for him while taking every bad thing they had to say about her just because she cared about Jason and wanted him to have a good relationship with his family regardless of their feelings for her. I really liked that Jason and Rachel fit so well together, and they really seemed to be such a strong couple. They seemed to fit together perfectly and were exactly what the other needed. I also thought they had really good chemistry together.

I did think that the relationship between Jason and Rachel was extremely rushed. These two and their relationship progressed so quickly that even though they seemed to fit, seemed to not be as real or believable to me. I had hoped to see them slow down a bit and really let their relationship develop, but things just seemed to perpetually be on fast forward for these two. I don't agree with how Jason's parents treated Rachel, but honestly I didn't blame them for their worries and fears when it came to her and Jason's relationship. If I was a parent in their shoes I would think that my kid had lost their mind and I would have a hard time not questioning motives for the way things happened. I also really didn't like Declan. I thought that his character was a straight up jerk and I honestly couldn't figure out how not only was he super successful but that he also seemed to have no problems getting and keeping girls. His character just didn't really work for me. I also really didn't understand something that happened with him and Rachel at the end of the book. Frankly I was wondering what the hell she was thinking and her actions made zero sense to me. One of the things that I did like is that we got both Jason and Rachel's POVs in this book. While I really enjoyed getting their thoughts, the transitions between POVs could have used a bit of work in my opinion. The switch between POVs was often times unclear and gave little to no notice before switching. It was hard to go from one paragraph in one's POV and then the next it would just be in the other's POV. I found it often times to be confusing and disorienting. Overall, I think that this book had a lot of potential and I did like the characters. For me though, this one just fell flat and wasn't able to deliver a real and believable story in such a rushed amount of time. I think that this one will be one that a lot of NA readers will enjoy and be able to get into, it just wasn't for me.

**Review Copy provided by Xpresso Book Tours**

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ARC Review: Wild Wolf by Jennifer Ashley

Graham is a shifter with an eye for the local florist, Misty. Her brother, Paul, did time in jail. Now, his former cellmates want information from him and decide Misty is the best source to find him. She calls Graham instead. He and his nephew, Dougal, pick up her scent and head out to the Nevada desert. They walk into a trap and are left without water and transportation. Dougal tends to Graham’s injuries while Misty searches for a cool shelter. She finds a cave with water and a very helpful hiker. She takes a sip of water. It’s the best she’s ever tasted. She rushes to give some to Graham. He takes a small amount and realizes it’s spiked with Fae black magic. Now he’ll heal quickly, but the Fae will have power over him. They both also have unquenchable thirsts. They are rescued by Graham’s friends, who will now provide security for both of them. Misty decides Graham is too dangerous to be around and tries to end their relationship. Graham keeps his distance, but can’t let go completely. A Fae helps the shifters and finds a cure for Misty’s thirst, but Graham is stuck. He refuses to drink anything. The Fae is invading his and Misty’s dreams trying to trick them into drinking the water again. The Fae helped the shifters extend their lives so they could mate with humans. Now, a connection has been made between the collars the shifters are forced to wear and the Fae. They want power back from the shifters. Graham is also forced to take in two wolf cubs. They are a handful and help him win back Misty. Misty and Graham find their attraction is true, but can it survive the Fae vendetta, shifter politics, and human criminals?

Misty is trying to protect her brother and resist Graham. One works, the other doesn’t. She’s determined to live her life and run her shop. The men in her life make it impossible. The wolf cubs bring her closer to Graham and they form a family unit. She welcomes the love of her life and his responsibilities.

Graham is an alpha in everything he does: stubborn, capable, willing to step in and help. Misty is his weakness. He’ll do anything for her safety and comfort. He is her perfect mate. As a couple, they face all demons together.

**ARC provided by Publisher**

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My Favorite Book Couple with Cynthia Eden

Award-winning author Cynthia Eden writes dark tales of paranormal romance and romantic suspense. She is a New York Times, USA Today, Digital Book World, and IndieReader best-seller. Cynthia is also a two-time finalist for the RITA® award (she was a finalist both in the romantic suspense category and in the paranormal romance category). Since she began writing full-time in 2005, Cynthia has written over thirty novels and novellas.

Cynthia is a “hybrid” author. She has published extensively with New York (her New York publishers include Kensington, Grand Central, and Harlequin), and she has also enjoyed success in her indie writing career.

Cynthia lives along the Alabama Gulf Coast. She loves romance novels, horror movies, and chocolate. Her favorite hobbies including hiking in the mountains (searching for waterfalls) and spelunking.

Places to find Cynthia: 

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ARC Review: Lost by Layla Hagen

Lost is a prequel novella to Lost in Us by Layla Hagen. I decided to read this before reading Lost in Us, but it can be read before or after. I was sucked right into the story with this one, and as soon as I finished I couldn't wait to read Lost in Us. I really liked getting to meet James and Serena and getting some of their back-stories. I also really loved that we got both of the POVs. This novella did a great job of setting up the reader for Lost in Us.

After losing her sister, Serena leaves England to live with her mother's best friend's family in California. She begins to move on from the past, but she still suffers from guilt. She has panic attacks and won't put herself out there. Her goal is to get into Stanford and make a better life for herself and her family. James is also suffering. After his girlfriend is killed in a car accident following a fight that they had before graduation, he is wracked with guilt and proceeds to self-destruct. He burns through his trust fund and is cut off by his father. Forced to stand on his own two feet for the first time in his life, he is unable to continue on the path he has been on. He turns to booze, fast cars and racing and women. He has never wanted anything more until he sees Serena.

I liked James. I loved his honesty right off and thought that even though he was really screwed up he was never anything but completely open about it. He was definitely damaged, but you could tell that once he knew he had hit rock bottom, it was really the driving force that he needed to change. He was able to really put everything behind him and use it as motivation. He was still suffering from guilt and wasn't looking for commitment, but he knew that eventually he wanted more. I found him interesting right off and couldn't wait to get to know him better. I liked Serena. She was vulnerable and she had a lot of guilt, but she was determined to do something with her life. She worked hard and did what she had to do. I liked getting to know some of her past and seeing what made her who she was. I was invested in her character from the start, and I found her extremely real and likable. I can't wait to see where things go with these two.

I think that this was a great way to introduce us to the characters and set up the first book in this series. I liked both James and Serena and I also found the secondary characters likable as well. I can't wait to see more of James and Serena and see their journey through their guilt and pain. I will admit that while I loved the dual POVs, I did find the back and forth in time shifts to get a bit confusing. I kept having to try and think back to where we had just been and where we were now. It was a bit tough to keep straight at times since not only is there a shift in time, but also in the ages of the two main characters. It was hard to see how things lined up at times. I am really looking forward to reading Lost in Us though, and hopefully things will be more clear as far as the timeline goes. I recommend reading this story to those that have read Lost in Us or want to read Lost in Us. If you are looking for a complete story, that is not what you will get with this one. However it does a good job of introducing us to these characters and I believe will be a great addition to those reading this series.

**ARC provided by Xpresso Book Tours**

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