Book Review: Finding It

Finding It

by Cora Carmack

Published: 10 October 2013 by Ebury Press

Version: Ebook received from InkSlinger PR (review my own, honest opinion)

Rating: 4 sofas

Sometimes you have to lose yourself to find where you truly belong…

Most girls would kill to spend months traveling around Europe after college graduation with no responsibility, no parents, and no-limit credit cards. Kelsey Summers is no exception. She’s having the time of her life . . . or that’s what she keeps telling herself.

It’s a lonely business trying to find out who you are, especially when you’re afraid you won’t like what you discover. No amount of drinking or dancing can chase away Kelsey’s loneliness, but maybe Jackson Hunt can. After a few chance meetings, he convinces her to take a journey of adventure instead of alcohol. With each new city and experience, Kelsey’s mind becomes a little clearer and her heart a little less hers. Jackson helps her unravel her own dreams and desires. But the more she learns about herself, the more Kelsey realizes how little she knows about Jackson.

I am thrilled to be taking part in the review tour for Finding It (organised by InkSlinger PR). I have adored Cora’s previous books and was excited to hear more about Kelsey. I always eagerly anticipate Cora’s books as I know just what to expect: a little bit of sexy romance combined with funny awkward moments, and above all a great story. I can tell you know that Finding It certainly did not disappoint, so if you loved her others you should definitely pick this up. And if you haven’t, you really should! 

We follow Kelsey (who we met in Losing It) as she goes travelling around Europe. Kelsey is a fun loving character, but when she appears to be followed by a sexy soldier, it sends her party plans out the window. 

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“Adventures don’t happen when you’re worried about the future or tied down by the past. They only exist in the now. And they always, always come at the most unexpected time, in the least likely of packages. An adventure is an open window; and an adventurer is the person willing to crawl out on the ledge and leap.”

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I’d love to be able to travel around Europe and visit all the romantic and exotic locations, such as Italy and Paris. I’m just not brave enough to do so! This is one of the reasons I fell in love with this book; each location Kelsey and Jackson travel to makes me more wistful of beautiful places. Sometimes fun and usually romantic, each setting is special in its own different way, and this set Finding It apart from Cora’s other books, which have both been focussed around  America. 

Kelsey as a character was quite hard to love. The way she wore her happy mask showed pretty much from the beginning that she was a girl running away from something. Heavily in denial about her baggage, she threw herself into the partying lifestyle. In a way, she reminded me of Max from ‘Faking It’. Unfortunately, while Max’s story hit me hard and made me fall in love with her, I just didn’t take to Kelsey the same way. Whether it is because I was more invested in Cade as a partner than Jackson, I’m not sure.

If you love European romances, this is definitely the book for you. Fun and very romantic, this made me want to explore secret locations all over the world. Yet another winner by Cora! 4 sofas.

Author Bio

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She’s done a multitude of things in her life– boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Author Goodreads

Book Blitz: Keeping Her

Eek! I’m so excited for Keeping Her by Cora Carmack, the continuation of Garrick and Bliss’ relationship.

Garrick Taylor and Bliss Edwards managed to find their happily-ever-after despite a rather . . . ahem . . . complicated start. By comparison, meeting the parents should be an absolute breeze, right?

But from the moment the pair lands in London, new snags just keep cropping up: a disapproving mother-in-law-to-be, more than one (mostly) minor mishap, and the realization that perhaps they aren’t quite as ready for their future as they thought.

As it turns out, the only thing harder than finding love is keeping it.

Check out the first chapter plus some bonus Garrick POV scenes from LOSING IT.

Also, Cora Carmack is planning to donate 20% of all her royalties from this book to the charity Planting Peace for the life of the book. You can find out more about Planting Peace here:  http://www.plantingpeace.org/. Planting Peace is a progressive nonprofit organization founded for the purpose of spreading peace in a hurting world. Although the organization operates on a global level, they emphasize the power of one; the ability that each person possesses to make a difference in the world.

Author Bio

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She’s done a multitude of things in her life– boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

http://coracarmack.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/CoraCarmackBooks

https://twitter.com/CoraCarmack

http://www.harpercollins.com/imprints/index.aspx?imprintid=518003

https://www.facebook.com/WmMorrowbks

https://twitter.com/WmMorrowBks

BUY LINKS:

 Amazon and Barnes and Noble

Giveaway

There will be two winners. One will win a set of signed copies of LOSING IT and FAKING IT and the other will win their name as a character in an upcoming novella by Cora Carmack scheduled to release in early 2014! This is an International giveaway!

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Release Day Launch: Faking It

Anybody who knows me will also know how much I rave about Cora Carmack. I loved her first novel Losing It (review here) and cannot wait to read Faking It. For you lucky people in the US, you can read it today! Go forth and buy! Thankfully we don’t have to wait much longer; it is published Thursday 6th here in the UK. I cannot wait to buy a copy and devour it. I’ve also got my fingers crossed at a chance to meet her when she visits the UK next week 🙂 Thanks to Kelly from Inkslinger PR for organizing this release day launch. Oh and Happy Birthday to Cora! 

Mackenzie “Max” Miller has a problem. Her parents have arrived in town for a surprise visit, and if they see her dyed hair, tattoos, and piercings, they just might disown her. Even worse, they’re expecting to meet a nice, wholesome boyfriend, not a guy named Mace who has a neck tattoo and plays in a band. All her lies are about to come crashing down around her, but then she meets Cade.

Cade moved to Philadelphia to act and to leave his problems behind in Texas. So far though, he’s kept the problems and had very little opportunity to take the stage. When Max approaches him in a coffee shop with a crazy request to pretend to be her boyfriend, he agrees to play the part. But when Cade plays the role a little too well, they’re forced to keep the ruse going. And the more they fake the relationship, the more real it begins to feel.

Author Bio

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She’s done a multitude of things in her life– boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

LINKS:

http://coracarmack.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/CoraCarmackBooks

https://twitter.com/CoraCarmack

Giveaway (US/Canada)

Enter to win either a signed copy of FAKING IT or a Kindle Fire with an ecopy of FAKING IT!

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Promo Post: No Attachments release day launch

Welcome to my post to celebrate the launch of No Attachments by Tiffany King!

Ashton Garrison walked away from a privileged life in order to hide from the one thing she’s not willing to face. She knows she left behind a trail of pain, but in the long run, her betrayal will hurt less than the truth. She now has one goal: Live life to the fullest with no regrets and no attachments. She has high hopes that a move to new surroundings will provide the escape she desires, but what Ashton doesn’t count on is how fate always seems to find a way to screw up any good plan. Sometimes, when love comes knocking, the pull is too strong not to answer. Suddenly, what she thought she wanted to escape from is what Ashton now wants more than anything.

Nathan Lockton has one mission: find his target and complete the task he was hired to do—no attachments and no emotion necessary. He’s done it over and over again. What he thought was a typical lost-and-found job has turned into a life examining moment as Nathan is forced to deal with something he has always ignored–his feelings. Now faced with a decision, Nathan must choose to either follow his heart or complete the job.

Love can come when you least expect it. The question is: If the odds are stacked against you, how far are you willing to go for the one you love?

Tiffany King is the author of The Saving Angels Series, Wishing for Someday Soon, Forever Changed, Unlikely Allies, Miss Me Not and Jordyn: A Daemon Hunter Novel book one. Writer by day and book fanatic the rest of the time, she is now pursuing her life-long dream of weaving tales for others to enjoy.

She has a loving husband and two wonderful kids. (Five, if you count her three spoiled cats). Her addictions include: Her iphone and ipad, chocolate, Diet Coke, chocolate, Harry Potter, chocolate, and her favorite TV shows. Want to know what they are? Just ask.

Twitter– @AuthorTiffany  Facebook– Tiffany King Pintrest– Tiffany King 

Blog– authortiffanyjking.blogspot.com Goodreads– Tiffany King

My Review

I was a bit nervous going into this book as I haven’t had much luck with NA lately. They are all very similar, and none are memorable enough to stand out. Whether it helped that I went in with low expectations, I was pleasantly surprised by this. The writing flows really nice. This is a quick read, one you can just devour. 

“You’re stalling, Ash. Besides, this was your idea. Pick a random stranger and bang his socks off,” Tessa quipped.

The plot of this book is very simple; for one reason or another, Ash wants a one night stand. This is the fun part of the story. The sexiness comes from Nathan, the guy she happens to meet in bar. The storyline comes from the mystery of Nathan’s reason for being here, and Ash’s background. All in all makes for a adorable contemporary.

I actually enjoyed Ash’s character much more than I thought I would. Her background is interesting, and there are some really good funny moments in the book. The pacing is superb, mixing in sexiness and story enough to keep the book moving, and you can tell a lot of thought has gone into Ash’s character. I wanted to know more about Nathan, and even though this book is told from two points of view, I didn’t feel as much for him (apart from phoar) as I did for Ash. Prequel/companion novel please? 

This book isn’t going to change lives or surprise you, but if you are looking for fan, romance or a laugh, then this book is for you. It has restored my faith in NA, and is highly recommended, especially for fans of Cora Carmack’s ‘Losing It’. 

Giveaway (US/Can)

Enter to win a signed copy of No Attachments, a signed 16 x 24 foam board No Attachments poster and a No Attachments charm necklace! 

 
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Promo Post: Picture Perfect Release Day Launch

Welcome to my Release Day post for Alessandra Thomas’ Picture Perfect! 

Fashion design major Cat Mitchell has a closet full of gorgeous clothes – and not a single thing fits. After two years of runway modeling for easy cash, an accident shattered her lower leg bone and her self-esteem in just one swift fall. Ten months of no exercise, prescription steroids, comfort eating and yoga pants meant returning to campus as a size twelve instead of her former size two. When her gorgeous long-time friend with benefits sees her for the first time after her accident and snubs her in front of all her friends, Cat’s self-image hits rock bottom. Her sorority sisters all insist that she looks gorgeous, but all Cat sees is the roll of her stomach when she sits down, or the dimpling at the back of her thighs that wasn’t there last year. Cat’s therapist prescribes something radical to stop the downward spiral – nude modeling for a nearby college’s human form drawing classes. When Cat faces her fears and bares it all for the class, she realizes that she’s posing naked in front the most gorgeous, buffest guy she’s ever seen in her life. He asks her out after the class, and after one steamy night together, Cat’s absolutely smitten.

Nate’s pretty close to perfect – he takes Cat rock climbing when he discovers that it makes her feel strong and becomes a great chef after he learns that the perfect pesto sauce makes her swoon. Cat starts to feel like her old self again – confident and beautiful – as long as Nate’s around. Even when he discourages her from entering the Real Woman Project, a design competition for plus-sized apparel, she reasons that he’s just trying to prevent old body image wounds from splitting wide open again. But when Cat goes home with Nate for Thanksgiving, she discovers something shocking from his recent past that proves that he hasn’t always been so encouraging of women of all shapes and sizes. Cat has no idea what to think, but she does know one thing – this might destroy their relationship before it’s even had a chance to get off the ground.

Before Cat can figure out whether the real Nate is the sensitive, adoring guy she fell in love with, or an undercover asshole, she’ll have to finally feel comfortable in her own skin – even if it means leaving him forever.

My Review

Right from the words ‘nude model’, I knew I had to read this book. I love books that tackle issues, and weight is the topic of interest for this debut NA novel. Having been bed-bound for months after an accident, former model Cat is now a size 12-14 instead of her former size 2. FYI, size 12 is not fat. I just wanted to make that clear. Although this book is overall very curvy friendly and promoting, in the beginning, when Cat tries to integrate herself back into her former life; friends, school, modelling and partying, she is very negative about her size. Her clothes don’t fit, her boyfriend no longer fancies her, and her friends ditch her. In my opinion this was kind of an over-reaction. Size 12-14 is the average size for a woman, and not what I would call fat at all.

However, Cat experiences something that most of us have gone through; the panic when our favourite pair of jeans is too tight, and the denial that nothing has changed. So from a theme point of view, this book is very relatable. When her guidance counsellor suggests nude modelling as a way to confront her body issues, Cat is mortified. I think this is a great thing (albeit highly embarrassing!) and really brings a new perspective to the term ‘bare all’. A hot guy then asks her out afterwards, which is a tad creepy, but is saved by the fact that they were childhood friends. And ironically, he used to be fat! 

Although this is pegged as a NA romance (and there are a lot of romance elements), this book should be more proud of the issues it tackles, what it can teach individuals about body image and personal growth. Although the romance was sexy and fun, I didn’t really believe in the love interest. Their relationship was all too perfect, and I was just waiting for something to happen that made it all tumble down. So it was a bit predictable in that sense. 

The scene I loved most in this book (other than the nude modelling) is when Nate forces Cat to come clubbing. After a few drinks, she becomes more confortable, and even Nate comments on how at ease she is with herself. While I do not condone drinking for this reason, I think this book highlighted the reality of why so many girls go clubbing and drink far too much; because of insecurities. This book shows how that doesn’t have to be the only way to get comfortable with yourself; you have to find something about you to be proud of. In that respect, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone with an interest in contemporary NA, fiction about social issues, and romance.

Enter the tourwide giveaway to win a copy of Picture Perfect: 

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Thanks to InkSlinger PR for hosting the release day launch and blog tour, and for providing a copy of the book for review.

Letterbox Love #16

Letterbox Love is a meme hosted by Lynsey of Narratively Speaking whereby book lovers can exhibit the books they received this week.

Welcome to my 2-week haul post! I got an amazing amount of books this week. My pile is never going to disappear, I just have to admit it!

First my library/print book piles 

 We will start on the left, which is my library pile. Last week I collect all adult titles. I ordered ‘After The Fall‘ by Charity Norman and ‘This Beautiful Life‘ by Helen Schulman. I enjoy books that confront issues not normally talked about, and this is common in Jodi Picoult’s books. After The Fall tells the story of what happens when a 5-year-old falls from an upstairs veranda. Only his mum knows what happened, and she’s not telling. This Beautiful Life describes events unfolding after a sexually explicit video goes viral among teenagers. Both sound really intriguing, so I am looking forward to reading them.

I have heard lots of people talk about ‘The Night Rainbow‘ by Claire King, so I had to see what all the fuss was all about. With such a pretty cover, it looks like a book to be read with a nice hot chocolate. Throw ‘How We Met‘ by Katy Regan into the pile, and you could see my strange tastes in books! I love me some romance, and this sounds quite similar to PS I Love You, which I adored.

Another three books to collect on Saturday. I’ll be starting Pandemonium on Monday or Tuesday because I want to try and finish it before the Lauren Oliver event on Tuesday evening. I’m psyched to find out how the trilogy end, though a bit nervous as people seem to have had mixed reactions. But it will be really good to meet her and hear her thoughts on the books, and hopefully she will talk a bit about the tv series as well.

Everybody knows I am a huge Robert Muchamore fan. While I love his original Cherub series the most, I will still pick up anything by him, including ‘Scorched Earth‘, the latest in the Henderson Boys series. Full of war and action and teen spies, this will be a nice break from all the contemporary stuff I’m reading at the moment! And last but not least, ‘The Library of Unrequieted Love’ by Sophie Divry. Any librarians or exlibrarians or book lovers will read this on the title alone, not to mention the quirky cover.

So I received my first ARC from a publisher this week. Nina Douglas from Indigo kindly sent me a copy if ‘If You Find Me‘ by Emily Murdoch. It has a rating of over 4 stars on GR, and everyone I know has loved it, so I thought I’d see what it was like. Many thanks to Nina for sending me this copy with a lovely cover! I also was sent ‘This Is What Happy Looks Like‘ by Jennifer E Smith by Headline. Thanks to Sam Eades for this. I have already read it and ADORED IT. My review should be coming out by the end of the month, but it was just amazing. I am in love. Definitely one to covet on my shelf!

This is certainly a fortnight for book packages! I was in the middle of reading a library copy of Lauren Oliver’s Delirium, when I received a copy in the post! There was no note or return address, so I can only presume it came from the lovely people at Hodder. Thank you very much for this, as it means I can get her to sign it on Tuesday! And it is great to have my own copy. And lastly, on Saturday I got a steamy package through the door. Not literally; ‘Losing It‘ by Cora Carmack arrived. Thanks to her and Ebury Press for sending me a copy. I have already read it (check out my review here) and I thought it was amazing. My favourite NA title so far! I’m also doing a giveaway, so if you fancy checking this out then enter here. The odds for you are very good at the moment!

 

In other bookish news, I met Stephenie Meyer this week, and she kindly signed my copy of ‘The Host‘, ready for the film release at the end of the month. She was really nice and posed for pictures with everyone, but it just seemed like the moment was over too soon. I much prefer book events where you get to hear the author speak, even if it is a promo spiel about their new release. 

Now for ebooks:

I received Daynight by Megan Thomason from Laura at Prism Book Tours. I’m taking part in the blog tour for this, so come and visit on the 23rd April for my post. I was psyched to read this because there has been a bit of a dip in the dystopian world, and I do love me a good dystopian. It’s been getting amazing reviews, so hopefully I will enjoy it too! 

Broken At Love is a new adult debut by Lyla Payne. A love triangle between a girl and two frat boy brothers, I know I will just devour it. My blog tour stop is on April 22nd, and I think there is also a giveaway for NA books or swag, so make sure you check that out. Thanks to Kelly from InkSlingerPR for letting me take part.

I was very excited to get an email from the lovely people at Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss to say I have been approved for Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer Echols. Although I haven’t read any of her books before, I have heard lots of good things. I am on a contemporary fix at the moment, and this looks so adorable! Thanks you guys, I can’t wait to read this. And music in it too! *squeals*

    

As a side note, I’ve got lots of things coming up on the blog this week. On Tuesday I am taking part in the book blitz for Picture Perfect by Camille Dixon. Thursday is the arrival of the Ever book tour by Jessa Russo. And finally, the end of my giveaway for Cora Carmack’s Losing It!

What did you receive this week? Have you read any of my books and do you think it should be at the top or the bottom of my to read pile? I’d love to hear from you! 

Letterbox Love #15

Letterbox Love is a meme hosted by Lynsey of Narratively Speaking whereby book lovers can exhibit the books they received this week.

Welcome to my 2-week haul post! Lots of exciting things happened in the last two weeks!

First my library/print book piles:

*Sigh* SO MUCH GOODNESS these last two weeks. First the library books! I ordered ‘If I Stay‘ by Gayle Forman because I stupidly picked up the second in the series a couple of weeks ago. Luckily this is only short, so should only be a day’s reading. This week I also collected ‘Delirium‘ by Lauren Oliver because she’s doing an event in London in a couple of weeks for Requiem, and I wanted to reread the series beforehand. 

Last week I went to a book signing for Nicholas Sparks as his latest book, ‘Safe Haven‘, is being released in the cinemas. The two stars from the film were also there, and they all answered questions before Nicholas signed books. 

    

I’m hoping to see this film next weekend so I’ll let you all know what it’s like! 

While I was in Waterstones I picked up ‘Attachments‘ by Rainbow Rowell. I absolutely ADORE her, and I have been after this for ages. Unfortunately all the copies I’ve seen in the bookshop are dirty, or have crumpled pages, and I’m a perfectionist! I’ll hopefully be rereading this soon, as I want to follow the playlist she has created for the book.

I also picked up ‘Between the Lines‘ by Tammara Webber, as I need more New Adult books in my life, and this looks really good. It also sparked a conversation with Laura from Bookish Treasures about where to shelve new adult books, as she is my NA guru!

I bought ‘The Vincent Boys‘ by Abbi Glines (who is coming to the UK soon!) and ‘Emailing Allie‘ by Julie Lawson because they both sound amazing. ‘Drowning Instinct‘ by Ilsa Bick was on special for only £3.50 so I thought I’d give it a whirl 🙂

Finally, my highlight from the past two weeks (and my year!) was the Geek Girl blogger party. My first blogger event, I got to meet lots of other bloggers, and everyone was super amazing and friendly and never complained that I kept plonking myself in their circles and eavesdropping! 

Holly Smale, authoress of Geek Girl, was so amazingly lovely. I like to stalk her on Twitter, but I was quite shocked when she invited me to the party. But she is such a doll 🙂 Look at the picture of all the goody bagness I received! I didn’t take any pictures, but please check out Kirsty’s post here and Luna’s here for their round ups of the day 🙂

 

 

 

In other book news, I also got a couple of ebooks:

‘The S-Word‘ by Chelsea Pitcher. I’ve heard lots of people talking about this bullying/suicide book, so I was really surprised to be approved! Thanks Simon & Schuster via Gallery books and Netgalley.

I received ‘Picture Perfect‘ buy Alessandra Thomas via Kelly of InkSlinger PR as I am talking part in the release day launch on March 26. When an ex-fashion designer takes to nude modelling after an accident, it causes all sorts of problems. This book sounds really good and I’m so pleased to be able to review it.

 

 ‘The Registry‘ by Shannon Stoker is actually an adult book, but a dystopian one at that, so I had to request it. Thanks to Edelweiss and Harper Collins via William Morrow Paperbacks for the approval!

I received a copy of ‘The Space Between‘ by the author Victoria Smith to review. New adult contemporary romance? Yes please!

 

‘Escape Theory‘ by Margaux Froley is a book I’ve been hearing good things about on the blogosphere. Thanks to Soho Teen and Edelweiss for this copy! I haven’t heard a lot about Soho Teen before, but they’ve got some interesting books coming up so I’ll be keeping my eye out!

What did you receive this week? Have you read any of my books and do you think it should be at the top or the bottom of my to read pile? I’d love to hear from you!