Category: Books

Cut Chapter – The Bluebird Chronicles

Posted on by Amber Marie in 4. Forever Bluebird, Blood Song, Books, Flames and Feathers, Midnight Shadows, The Bluebird Chronicles, Writing

Today, because it’s the middle of the month and I, of course, am behind on EVERYTHING…. I have decided to give you a cut chapter from what would have been the fourth book in the Bluebird Chronicles series. Back when the series was five books. Back when Noah had proposed to Penelope at the end of the second book and she’d accepted. Back when they’d gotten married in the third book, had a really bad miscarriage at the end of the third book. Back when Noah was cheating on her, and everything was different. Back before I had switched everything to first person POV.
This scene has a lot of things that no longer apply. So there will be mentions of things that are no longer part of the story. So let me do a quick recap of the original story-line that doesn’t exist anymore because I did something COMPLETELY different with this story.

So, originally, the story went like this. In the first book, Penelope meets Noah before she meets Reid and they start dating. Her and Reid screw up, and sleep together, making her and Noah to break up. Reid and Penelope start dating after that and then break up. When they break up, Penelope and Noah end up getting back together and trying again. At the end of the second book, Noah proposes and Penelope says yes. The get married in the third book. Just before the wedding, however, there was a moment where Reid and Penelope almost sleep together, but they don’t. Noah, however, believes that they did. Which causes some internal strife between Noah and Penelope. Reid is actually dating someone, though no one knows about it. He’s kind of kept it to himself. Penelope finds out she’s pregnant just after the honeymoon, and the timing is right about the same time that Noah thinks that Reid and Penelope slept together, so he doesn’t believe that the baby is even his.

When Penelope goes into labor early, Noah is no where to be found. He’s on location shooting a movie, and is sleeping with a co-star. No one can reach him. By the time they get ahold of him, Penelope has already delivered a severely pre-mature baby, who lives about two hours before she dies. Penelope has had an medical issue and also almost died. Everything is fine by the time Noah arrives, but he really doesn’t think that the baby was even his so he’s angry. Noah and Penelope end up arguing later on in the fourth book. They’re miserable, both of them, and angry. When they argue, it gets a bit physical, and Penelope ends up with a bruise on her arm where he grabbed her when she almost hit him. It’s turns toxic quickly after the miscarriage and Penelope decides she can’t live like that anymore and she leaves, going to see Callie. Reid shows up quickly after that and is with her when she goes to collect some of her things from the apartment in New York.

He’s the one that tells Noah that the baby was in fact his, and this creates a whole host of issues for Noah, especially since some tabloids caught wind of him cheating on Penelope (which he’s been doing practically the whole time they were married) and have run the story. Penelope goes back to Illinois to stay in the house that Noah bought them there. She and Reid start arguing pretty consistently, she finds out he has a girlfriend and has been lying to everyone about her, he’s mad at her for staying with Noah long after she should have, etc. They aren’t really on speaking terms. Neither are her and Noah.

The scene I have for you, happens just before the final paperwork is signed for their divorce. Bailey has finally been turned into a vampire, and in the original, Asher and Noah had hit it off really well and become friends, and then stayed friends when Penelope and Noah split. (Like I said, this story has changed A LOT). So naturally, he was invited to the party to celebrate since he was going to be in town anyway. Keep in mind that A LOT changed between this version and the version I am actually publishing, and while this version was fun and had an interesting plot, I eventually decided to tell a different story. You still have the background of Noah and Penelope, you still have a lot of the points, but now most of it happened before the first book starts.

Okay, if you’re still here, enjoy this cut chapter. Love you! As always, drink your water, be safe, make good choices, and don’t eat yellow snow.

Cut Chapter from Lacuna
(now titled Forever Bluebird)

Penelope sighed before closing her eyes and taking a fortifying breath. She should have known he would be here. Of course he would be. What had made her believe he wouldn’t be. This was a party for Asher and Bailey. She’d finally completed her transition and they were all celebrating her new lease on life. Penelope had come straight from work, only to walk into the crowded bar to find not just Reid, who was awkward enough to still be around, but Noah as well. Of course they were nowhere near one another, but they had clearly divided the room up between the two of them, and she wasn’t safe anywhere. The last time she’d seen either one of them she’d argued with them both. Forcing a relaxed smile on her face, she cut her way through the crowd to where her best friend was standing with her husband. 

“PJ! You made it!” Bailey exclaimed, wrapping her arms around her as she got near. Penelope smiled warmly and returned the hug, pulling away after a moment to hug Asher as well. 

“Of course. Sorry, a meeting with a client ran long.” She told them as Asher pulled away. 

“It’s fine Pen, I’m just glad you’re here.” Asher told her with a small smile. 

“Yeah. I’m gonna get a drink. You guys need refills?” She asked, taking a step toward the bar, and a brief respite from the voices in her head. 

“No, we’re good.” Asher told her as Bailey fell into conversation with the woman standing next to her. She nodded and made her escape. 

She set her purse on the bar as she waited for the bartender to notice her and get to her. She scanned the crowd using the mirror above the bar so she caught the moment that Noah noticed she was there. She saw him stiffen across the room and take a long drink of the bottle in his hand before he tuned back into the conversation he was having with a leggy blonde in a short red dress. She rolled her eyes and looked back at the bar. The bartender caught her eye and nodded, letting her know he’d be with her in a moment. She tried to school her features as best she could, and took a cleansing breath. She could do this, for Bailey’s sake. As long as she avoided Noah and Reid she’d be okay, she’d be able to have a good time for at least an hour or two before she begged off and was able to leave. She’d worked a lot that week so claiming exhaustion wasn’t too far a stretch. Besides, she wanted a good night’s sleep before she had to meet Noah at the house to sign the paperwork that would officially make it hers. Their divorce was almost final, they just had a few more things to settle, which is why he was in town in the first place. Probably why Asher and Bailey had decided to celebrate now, even though technically Bailey had been a vampire for almost a month and a half now. 

Grandmere had been by recently and had even blessed the event. Placing Bailey firmly under her protection. Reid had been irritated that she’d come to town to see Penelope instead of him and they’d fought about it, even though it was stupid. It seemed like all they did anymore was fight. She broke herself out of that thought as the bartender finally approached her. She ordered two shots of whiskey and a beer. She took the shots back to back before picking up her beer and her purse and walked away from the bar and made a circle of the room, saying hello to people as she went. 

Half an hour later she was standing in the corner catching up with Sama when Reid walked over with Shiloh, intent on starting a game of pool near where they were standing. Penelope smiled at Sama and excused herself to the bar for another drink. She sighed again when she reached the bar and squeezed in between groups of people she didn’t know who were also waiting. She’d attempted not to look at Reid, but she couldn’t help but notice the look on his face when she’d turned away. It had been hard to miss, especially when she could feel the bond pulling at her. She had it shut down, but she could always feel when he was trying to get a read on her. He was probably one of the only people left on Earth who could read her without the bond, but it worked better when he could hear her thoughts. She wouldn’t open it though, and she probably never would again. Last time she had, he’d used the information to hurt her and she still wasn’t sure she completely forgave him for that. 

This time when the bartender set her shots on the bar, she reached for one and a hand from behind her reached for the other. She turned to look at who it was as she downed the first one. Fin just smiled and downed the other. 

“If I have to watch you be so obvious about your avoidance of certain people, then I get to drink your shots.” He told her as he set the glass on the bar next to hers. Penelope chuckled. 

“I’m fine, it’s other people being weird, not me.” She told him as she picked up her beer and turned away. They moved away and toward a table where they could sit and talk. 

“Right.” He rolled his eyes. “You’re avoiding Reid so the two of you don’t argue about something stupid and no one blames you for avoiding your ex husband who has his tongue down someone else’s throat.” 

Penelope sighed again. “Look, what Noah does, and who he does it with, is no longer my business. It didn’t matter when we were together, why should it matter now?” She asked, taking a drink of her beer. 

“Reid seemed pretty put off about it.” 

“That’s his problem. Not mine. Contrary to popular belief, I’m not in charge of either of them. They’re grown. Old enough to take the consequences of their own actions and none of them are my fault.” 

Fin laughed before taking a drink of his own beer. “Girl please, this is me you’re talking to. I thought we were better friends than that. I wasn’t blaming you PJ, just informing you that if you’re wanting to make an early escape, you should before the two of them fight just to get your attention.” 

“They don’t want my attention. They’re preoccupied.” She scoffed, rolling her eyes again. 

“You sure about that?” Fin asked as he stood up, one eyebrow raised in question. Penelope shook her head but watched him walk away. She sighed again but didn’t get up, content to sit at the quiet table and finish her beer. She hadn’t talked to Bailey since she’d arrived but she wasn’t too worried, her and Asher were busy with their other friends. She saw them all the time, they wouldn’t be too upset.

“Are you really going to sit here and pout all night?” A voice behind her asked. Penelope closed her eyes and took a drink of her beer. Maybe if she ignored him he’d go away. She heard the chair Fin had vacated slide back, so he must have sat down. 

“What do you want, Reid?” She asked, not looking at him, instead focusing on the group around them. 

“Are you going to pout or are you going to party with your best friend?” He asked again, leaning on the table and into her space. She leaned back in her chair away from him, still refusing to look at him. 

“I am not pouting. I’m enjoying myself. Bailey and Asher are busy, I’ve talked to them, and Sama, and Fin actually.” She said finally before finishing what was left in her bottle. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need another drink.” 

“If you’d look at me Bluebird, you’d know I already got you another beer.” He said, a bottle appearing in her peripheral vision on the table. 

“How presumptuous of you.” She scoffed. “But I have to drive myself home soon, so I’ll be switching to something non-alcoholic, thank you.” She said standing. 

“I can drive you.” He said softly, causing her to pause. She almost broke and looked at him. “If you want, I mean.” 

“No thank you. I have no desire to fight with you tonight Reid.” She said finally, still standing by the table. 

“We don’t have to fight.” He assured her quickly. She closed her eyes and tipped her head toward the ceiling. 

“No Reid. We will. You’ll get mad at me about something stupid, again, and fight with me.” She turned to look him in the eye finally. “So why don’t you go back to your girlfriend? You guys don’t have to hide now, I thought you’d be happy to flaunt it.” Ried looked down at the table and picked at the label of his own beer. 

“She broke up with me, Pen.” He said sadly. “That’s why she’s not here.” Penelope swallowed hard. 

“Well I’m sorry. But I’ll be fine without the ride, thank you.” She said moving away. “Besides, I have to finalize my divorce tomorrow.” She threw back over her shoulder before she’d gone too far. 

From her place at the bar she watched him in the mirror. He sat there alone for a moment looking put out and her resolve almost broke. Then he downed the rest of the beer in his hand and the one he’d brought for her. He stood and moved away from the table, leaving the bottles and she lost him in the crowd shortly after that. She collected her soda from the bartender and made her way back over toward Bailey, intending to spend a little more time with her before she left. She didn’t want to think anymore about Reid, but her brain wouldn’t let go of the look on his face when he’d told her about the break up. If she hadn’t known him so well, she’d have thought he was pretending to be hurt for sympathy. But she did know him, and knew that wasn’t the case. 

She did her best to put it out of her mind while she visited with her friends before she made her excuses and left, just like she’d planned. She made it outside and stopped to heave a sigh of relief. Besides her brief conversation with Reid, she’d managed to avoid both him and Noah the entire two and a half hours she’d been there. She dug into her purse for her keys and was preparing to walk away when a voice behind her made her pause. 

“Where’s lover boy?” She tipped her head back and groaned aloud. She’d been so close. So close. Practically to her car already. 

“What?” She asked turning to face her ex-husband for the first time since their meeting with their attorneys. 

“Where’s Reid?” He asked, pushing himself off of the wall, a cigarette in his hand, and a distinctive slur in his voice. 

“Inside I assume. He’s not my responsibility. Though I caution you against fighting with him. B and Ash won’t take too kindly to it. Neither will the bartender. You really don’t need that press right now.” She found herself saying, before she cursed herself mentally. What did she care about his image anymore? He’d tainted it all on his own after being caught publicly cheating on her while she’d been pregnant. 

“How long did you wait before you took him to our bed?” He asked, coming closer to her and blowing out a lungful of smoke. She sighed again. 

“I didn’t. He’s been dating someone since before you and I split.” 

“That’s never stopped either of you before.” He sneered. Penelope closed her eyes. 

“Yup. Once a million years ago just after we met and then we kissed once after you and I got back together. Of course it’s me that has the problem with-“ Penelope cut herself off and took a deep breath in through her nose before letting it out slowly through her mouth. “Nope. You know what, no. I’m not doing this with you. Not here on the sidewalk. Not ever. We’ve said enough. I’ll see you tomorrow to sign the papers.” She said before she turned and walked purposefully away. 

“I know you tried to fuck him in the house I bought us, before we’d even moved into it. Why do you think I’m letting you have it?” He called after her. She clenched her fists and made herself keep walking. When she was finally inside her Jeep, she locked the doors and leaned her head on the steering wheel. 

It could have gone worse, she thought to herself, but it also could have been better. With a deep breath she started the car and drove off toward her house. Once there, she locked the doors and made her way upstairs to the bathroom. After a hot shower and a small cup of tea, she tried to block out the fight she’d almost gotten into with Noah. She almost wanted to call and see if Bailey would come to the house the next day, just to keep them from fighting. Noah tended to be on his best behavior when he was sober and someone else was around. 

The next morning dawned bright and early. Penelope drug herself out of bed, did her morning workout, and then pulled out her IPad to get started on some work for a client while she drank her morning cup of coffee. Noah knocked on the door at precisely ten o’clock and Penelope steeled herself before she pulled the door open and let him in. He followed her silently to the kitchen where they laid the papers on the island counter. 

“It’s all here, just like I said it would be. You get the house here in Illinois, and the apartment in New York. I get the LA apartment and my house in London, obviously. That’s one house and one apartment each. You get to retain your income from your business, I retain everything I earned from my career, and you don’t owe me anything for the investment in your company.” He said, his voice attempting a calm facade that he couldn’t quite reach. 

“All wrapped up with a neat little bow.” She snarked. He shot her a look and she shook her head, she didn’t want to fight with him. She wanted to sign the paperwork and get it over with. 

“Are we going to fight or are we going to do this?” He asked, setting the pen down on the counter. 

“Let’s just get this over with Noah.” She said with a sigh. 

“According to the prenup you signed, I don’t have to give you anything and you would owe me for that two million dollar investment, plus interest. Is that the route you want to go because we can.” He said, his voice tinged with acid. 

“You’re the one who cheated on me. It makes the prenup invalid anyway. So I could take you for half of everything.” She sneered back at him, narrowing her eyes. He swallowed hard. “But I don’t want it. I wanted a marriage. I wanted someone who loved me. Since I’ve been denied that, I’ll take whatever you’re willing to give me as a consolation prize.” 

“I’m not the only one who cheated, remember?” He said. 

“Hey Bluebird,” Reid’s voice rang out from above them before Penelope could respond. They turned to look up at the loft. Reid was standing there, nothing on but a pair of low slung sweatpants that made it clear he wasn’t wearing anything underneath them. Penelope closed her eyes and groaned audibly. 

“Murder Christian Reid Walker. I am going to murder you.” She muttered. Noah turned and looked at Ried, who was just smirking in their general direction, braced against the railing like he didn’t have a care in the world, and back to Penelope, shaking his head. 

“Why is it that every time you and I have something important to do, he’s up in our business? Every fucking time Penelope. Hell, he was smack dab in the middle of our entire relationship, right from the beginning.” He stacked the papers back up and tapped them against the counter. “What was that lie you told me about not bringing him into our bed again?” He sneered at her, throwing the pen onto the counter, where it bounced and landed on the floor. 

“I didn’t. I don’t actually know what he’s doing here besides being an asshole.” She told Noah, not sure why she was defending herself to someone that didn’t deserve it. 

“Just sign the papers so I can be done with this freak show.” Noah spat as Reid slowly made his way down the stairs. 

“Yeah, sign the papers and come back to bed Pen.” He said, hiding a smirk as he bypassed Noah to grab a bottle of blood out of the fridge. He leaned against the opposite counter and raised an eyebrow at Penelope. 

“I can’t believe you.” Noah muttered before looking at Reid. Penelope snatched the pen off of the floor and hurried to sign the papers before they started fighting. “I thought you had a girlfriend.” He spat at him. 

“We broke up.” Reid said with a grin. “Couple weeks after you and Pen called it quits finally.” Penelope rolled her eyes as she scanned the next page and signed it quickly. 

“Of course you did. I’m surprised you two waited that long to start sleeping together again. Your little avoidance show last night must have been a fun game of foreplay.” Noah spat. 

“Oh no, she was actively avoiding me. Has been for some time. Something about not trusting men ever again.” Reid told him calmly before taking another drink of blood. Penelope sighed as she scanned the last page. 

“Is that what you call it?” Noah sneered, turning to face Reid directly. Reid straightened. 

“It isn’t like we’re going to be estranged forever, Pretty Boy. She’s my Flame, remember? I will always have a stronger connection to her.” Reid told him as he set the bottle to the side. “Someone had to make sure you didn’t hurt her. Lord knows she wouldn’t let me hurt you when you left bruises on her skin, maybe she’s changed her mind. Should we ask her?” 

“And I’m done. Here Noah. Take these.” Penelope said suddenly, shoving half of the papers at him, along with the pen. “Now leave. I’m done with that. I’ll have Asher and Bailey collect anything that I may have left in London or LA. I’ll have them deliver anything I find here or in New York.” She demanded, staring Noah down, daring him to say anything else. 

“Fine. I’m done with this. Have a nice life.” Noah spat in her direction before he picked the papers up off of the counter. “You two deserve each other.” He added over his shoulder. 

“Damn right she deserves someone who won’t do to her what you did.” Reid called after him. Penelope waited until the door slammed before she turned to Reid. 

“Get out of my house.” She bit out between clenched teeth. 

“Come on Penelope, we need to talk.” 

“No we don’t. I have nothing to say to you just like I have nothing to say to him. My marriage blew up in my face and your response was to ridicule me and use it as a weapon against me. That wasn’t fair.” She told him before shaking her head. “It doesn’t matter anymore. Get out.”

Soundtrack of My Life – Part 2

Posted on by Amber Marie in 4. Forever Bluebird, Blood Song, Books, Flames and Feathers, Life, Midnight Shadows, No Ordinary Love, The Bluebird Chronicles, Tuesday Ten, Writing

A few years ago, before my divorce, I wrote My Life as a Song – Part One. It was part of a writing challenge I was doing with a friend, and it was to write something autobiographical. I made a youtube playlist and everything. It was over on my personal blog that I never post to anymore, but I got this idea that I would do a Tuesday Ten in the same kind of vein, only this time, not only will it be more than ten, but I’m going to use some of the songs that I write to. Songs that have influenced plot points, characters, entire stories. Sometimes even series. I hope you enjoy them. I have made a youtube playlist as well, and included the link, because not all of the songs were on Spotify, I checked.

So, without further ado, I give you, in no particular order, The Soundtrack of My Life – Part Two.

Trenches by Beth Crowley – This song is amazing and actually inspired a few characters actually. Not that it does much of that now, but originally it inspired some of the stuff that happened in the Dohmnall series with a certain character. Now that I’ve changed that story though, it’s a little different, and it no longer applies. Though, it did inspire some of my fanfic. I have an entire series of Fanfic that should be getting written this year and published on AO3 that literally takes it’s name from the title of this song. I’ve already written a couple of the shorts that go with this series, one is posted but the other comes at the end, so it’s not.

Bluebird by Elizabeth Smart – This song is where I got Penelope’s nickname in The Bluebird. Chronicles. I know it’s originally a Destiel song, but the lyrics apply to Reid and Penelope so well. It’s my favorite thing and I love it.

Yes I Will by Backstreet Boys – I have talked about this song before. It’s the song that inspired the title of No Ordinary Love. There’s one line in the song that goes “This is no ordinary love, and I could never have enough….” I wrote the original fanfic that No Ordinary Love is based off of on paper. It was two full five subject notebooks by the time I threw it away before I left for the Navy. I used to hide in my room and write and listen to music. Because of that, I would scribble song lyrics in the margins while I thought through the next part I was writing. I noticed one day going back through the notebook that the same three words were written on almost every single page somewhere. So, naturally I titled the story that.

Please by Bette & Evermore by Dan Stevens – I have paired these two songs for a reason. If you have never listened to these songs, I challenge you to listen to them back to back. Please and then Evermore. Do it. It sounds like two people in a relationship who want the same thing, but because of shitty communication skills, they lose it. I had both of these songs on my playlist that I listened to a lot back in 2020 and one day while I walked home from work, they played back to back and I had to go back and listen again. And then again. This sparked an idea, which became the entire basis for Hold On, an Avengers Fanfic that I wrote, and published in 2020. It was my therapy after my dad died, all because of these two songs. It’s amazing the power of music.

Humbling River by Puscifer – This song was one of the original songs that inspired The Dohmnall Institute series, back when it was called Halls of Ivy. Back when it was a baby idea. Back when I was writing it alone. It doesn’t apply as much now, but it’s still on every playlist I make for that series. Every. Single. One. because I want to remember the excitement of when we first started, and why we came up with the idea in the first place.

Leave your Lover by Sam Smith – Originally, this was the song that was playing when Reid and Penelope first sleep together. In the original version, before the rewrites, before Noah became a background character, she was dating Noah at the time, and this song was EXACTLY how Reid felt. He wanted her to leave Noah for him, though he’d never actually ask that of her because he wasn’t sure he could trust his own emotions. He had never felt anything like this before.

How Did I Fall In Love With You by Backstreet Boys – Dohmnall Institute/Metanoia Chronicles and No Ordinary Love. This song is about falling in love with your best friend. It’s interesting the way that kind of happens, not just in writing but in real life as well. I love it and it fits so well with the characters that I’ve assigned it to and their eventual journey.

Castle by Halsey – Reid and Penelope. That’s it. It makes me think of them. It’s the song that’s playing when Reid and Penelope kiss for the first time.

Tennessee Whiskey by Chris Stapleton – Also a Reid and Penelope song that’s important in the third book for reasons. I can’t tell you now, but when you read it, you’ll know. That’s the song that plays.

Sacred Heart by The Civil Wars – In the original fanfic version of It Could Be Monsters, this is the song that Tess sings to Tucker. You don’t get lyrics in the new version, but this is still the song. When you get to meet these characters, and you understand their journey, I hope you enjoy it. The songs in French too, so there’s that. I absolutely love it.

The Rest of Our Life by Tim McGraw & Faith Hill – Basher. This is 100% an Asher and Bailey wedding song. That’s it. If I had to pick a single song to describe their life together, it would be this on.

Things we lost in the fire by Bastille – This is a song for Black Balloon. I think that it helps me remember the pain and the healing journey that Hadley (the FMC) is on.

Careless Whisper by Seether – Also a Black Balloon song. No explanation needed really.

I hate u, I love u by Gnash ft. Olivia O’Brien – This song is 100% Mason and Ember from No Ordinary Love. I cannot imagine any other couple in all of what I write that it fits so well, besides maybe one other couple, but I refuse to tell you about them yet.

Okay, we’re going to end it there. I know that it’s only 15 songs, but if I don’t stop there, I will go on forever. There are others that I absolutely love, and I do post a weekly playlist, but unfortunately those are just some of the songs I’ve listened to in the last week. I have posted the playlist above, so enjoy that and I will see you guys tomorrow. As always my loves, drink your water, be safe, make good choices, and don’t eat yellow snow!

Setting Preview: Ember’s Apartment

Posted on by Amber Marie in Books, Life, No Ordinary Love, Setting, Writing

So this week we’re going to talk about Ember’s apartment. Ember is one of the MC’s from No Ordinary Love. She works for an advertising agency in Orlando and she has a loft apartment in a building and she loves it. It’s not very big, but it’s everything to her.

Ember’s apartment is a story and a half high. When you walk into her apartment, you come into the living room. If you take a left, you can find the kitchen, which is underneath the loft. There isn’t a table, or anything where you can sit and eat. It really is quite a small space. She has three stools at the counter on the opposite side of the kitchen and she sits there and does work a lot. Though mostly she eats on the couch when it’s just her. Her couch is tucked partially back underneath the stairs with the tv across from it and it is extremely comfortable. It has to be, since Shaye and Mason often crash on it. Most of her furniture has extra storage built into it, and that helps her have more in the apartment that doesn’t take up a lot of room.

Once you go upstairs, it’s her bedroom. It’s not hidden behind walls or anything like that, there’s just the bannister at the edge of the platform and the stairs. Like with most lofts, everything is open. So, she has a small desk over in the corner where she keeps anything that she has to bring home, but she doesn’t work there very often. She’s got a smallish reach in closet, and then her bed completely dominates the space. She could have gone with something smaller, but wants to be comfortable. Most of her money is put into her savings account for the house she wants to buy one day, so she isn’t too picky. Her decor is minimal but classy because while she has a famous best friend, she isn’t making that kind of money, but she still wants a nice place to call home.

Ember is simple, and her home reflects that. Though her complicated emotions about people are anything but simple. Her home is her escape, and it’s reflected in the way she chooses to decorate and present herself within that space. It’s a place for Mason to go and remember their more humble roots, and where they started together in a little neighborhood where the most important thing was ice cream on Fridays. Back when her parents were still alive.

I hope you like the little bit of Ember’s apartment that you get to see here. That’s all for me this week. I’ll see you on Monday! Have a great weekend everyone. As always, drink your water, be safe, make good decisions, and don’t eat yellow snow.

Book Review: Filthy Rich Vampire by Geneva Lee Albin

Posted on by Amber Marie in Book Review, Books, Writing

Okay, So I’m going to review Filthy Rich Vampire by Geneva Lee Albin. I loved the concept of this book, and I was so excited to read this, and I did really like it. The second book is on the TBR list for me for this year. Read on and see what I thought.

Julian Rousseaux is a vampire from one of the notable houses. He’s been asleep for a long time and had no desire to be woken, but he is anyway. The Rites have been enacted, and for the upper echelon of Vampire society, it’s a big deal. He is now being expected by his family, and other important people, to follow the rules and find a wife.

Enter Thea, a cellist who’s having a rough time right now. Her mother’s medical bills, a job she doesn’t really like, there’s a lot going on. When she runs into Julian at a gala, there’s something about her that he can’t walk away from, and she can’t be compelled by him. He desires her and she might be the answer to his problems.

There’s one little problem. Thea is a virgin.
The way that the vampires in this world work, that’s a big deal. And a line Julian won’t cross, despite his desire to do so.

I really did like this book. I felt like the situations that Thea and Julian find themselves in prior to them meeting, kind of lends to their desire for Julian to actually extend the offer to Thea in the first place, but it’s also why Thea ends up accepting. Thea kind of gets swept up into this fantasy world that we all kind of wish we could get caught up in. Beautiful clothes, wonderful destinations, fancy parties. It’s amazing. Thea loves it. But then there’s the actual reason she’s there, she’s supposed to pretend to be the woman that Julian’s going to marry. He wants her to attend the Rites, and even before they really begin, the lines are being drawn in the sand. Thea is human, she isn’t a familiar, she isn’t a vampire, she’s human. There are rules, and that fact alone breaks them. So that kind of breaks up the cast of supporting characters around the MC’s. On one side you have the people who support Julian’s choice, and then there’s the people who don’t. So it was interesting to see how these characters shaped the decisions and the way that Julian and Thea are reacting to things.

The really dynamic part of this book was watching the way that the people who do support Julian and Thea change the story for their benefit. They do want to help, but this system is so old and rigid, that there isn’t much room to move within it. The big part is that no one, and I mean no one, knows that Thea is a virgin. This puts a wedge between what they want from one another, and what they can actually have. It isn’t a simple thing and it ends up driving a bit of a wedge with them that eventually leads to them going their separate ways at the end of the book.

There’s so many moving parts within this story that I cannot wait to read the next one. I can’t wait to see what happens during the Second Rite. How is that going to be accomplished with the way that the first book ended. It was heartbreaking at the end because you really really want them to just better communicate, to tell each other everything that they’re thinking and that’s going on around them and ugh! Look. Just go read it okay? Because it’s totally worth it.

Okay, I’m off for the day, there is writing and plotting to be done! Enjoy. As always, drink your water, be safe, make good choices, and don’t eat yellow snow. Much love!

Character Preview – Natalia Patterson

Posted on by Amber Marie in Books, Character profile, No Ordinary Love, Writing

Today’s Character preview is on Lia Patterson, Mason’s girlfriend at the beginning of No Ordinary Love. Read on to learn more about her.

Natalia Dawn “Lia” Patterson is the only child. Her dad has a lot of money and she grew up very used to the rich girl lifestyle in Orlando Florida. She started dating Mason because he was the “bad boy” of Between Sundays. He had the money to keep her in the lifestyle she was accustomed to, and liked to party, which was perfect for what she wanted. She’s part of the local modeling scene and a social media influencer that likes to talk about the rich lifestyle. Mason is kind of a feather in her cap.

When he goes to rehab and tries to change his life, Lia doesn’t understand why her life must also change. She gets that his might, but she doesn’t want to sit at home all the time, she prefers to be out and about. She isn’t real fond of Ember, and it’s a point of contention for her and Mason that he’s still very good friends with her. When Lia moved in with Mason, she threw a huge fit about Ember having her own bedroom in Mason’s house. They argued about it constantly, but Mason never wavered and eventually Ember was allowed to keep her bedroom there, though it’s hardly ever used now.

Lia has a group of friends that she’s really close to. They’re other rich girls like herself, and she’s known most of them since boarding school. Though they seem superficial on the surface, they are all actually good friends. When Mason gets sober, they actively encourage Lia to curb her own partying ways for a little while until Mason is more comfortable, though Lia doesn’t take the advice her friends give her.

While she attends Between Sundays get togethers, she isn’t fond of them either, preferring the company of her own friends, though they are never invited, despite her repeated requests for them to be. The guys aren’t stupid, and they don’t want the kind of attention around them when they hang out in their homes.

There isn’t much about Lia, unfortunately, she’s got a halfway decent backstory, and after she exits the No Ordinary Love manuscript, she does continue on doing what she’s been doing. She uses the breakup with Mason to gain sympathy on her blog and her other social media, and Mason doesn’t bother to put a stop to it, preferring to leave all thoughts of her in the past. Lia plays a small but significant to Mason, part in this book and while she’s not as well developed as I usually prefer my secondary characters to be, she is developed enough for this. I have no idea how she and Mason met, other than it was at a party. I’m not sure why they’ve been together more than two years when their personalities do sometimes clash, other than Mason loves her, and when it’s just the two of them, she is very sweet and does genuinely care for him. She does love him, in her own way. I think it mostly comes down to the way she views the people she loves, which is sort of distant, and the way he does, which is very close and tight-knit. Their upbringings were so different that she doesn’t see an issue in her and Mason’s relationship and the way they operate because it’s very much like her parents; together but having very separate lives. This isn’t what Mason wants though, even though he does love her, he thought maybe they’d find a balance that suited them, though they never quite did.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for you today. Sorry it isn’t too much, but it is what it is I guess. Hope you at least enjoyed this much of what I’ve got figured out for Lia. She’s kind of an antagonistic type personality on the page, though she isn’t always like that. Anyway, have a wonderful day my friends. Happy new year!

As always, Be safe, make good choices, and don’t eat yellow snow!

Book Review – Suddenly Dirty by J A Low

Posted on by Amber Marie in Book Review, Books

This is another one brought to me by the Book of Faces. Seriously you guys, they’re starting to figure me out! There’s so many things on my TBR list right now! I think I just added fifteen new books last week. It’s a lot, but I’m not worried. It’s a lot of reading for me this fall.

So, Suddenly Dirty, you guys, this book was awesome. This is one of those rockstar trope, “forbidden” love type of stories. It has a HEA ending, of course, because it’s a romance novel. Sienna Hayes is one of the main characters and after a really rough vacation, she takes a job with her best friend as the stylist for the band Dirty Texas. Through a drunken mishap, she ends up in bed with Evan Wyld, one of the members of the band who has promised her best friend, the band’s publicist, that he won’t go after her. Sienna has been declared off limits, but Evan can’t seem to stay away from her. Nor can she stay away from him. It’s a really cute story with a lot of ups and downs and drama but the steamy scenes are just that….steamy and spicy AF! It’s a great read.

Book Club for Complicated House Plants

Did the book strike you as original?
Yes. I really enjoyed this book, and for all of the contrived, tropey stuff I’ve read before, this still managed to feel original. I really liked the world this author dunked me into with this story.

Which character did you feel the most sympathy for?
Sienna. I’ve been through some of the same relationship struggles that she has so I empathize pretty hard with her. There were a few times I just wanted to hug her.

Did you like the “heat” level of the book?
I did. At first I wasn’t sure, starting with the first time Evan and Sienna were together, it seemed a bit much a bit quickly, but after I got further into the story, it made a little more sense. I did really like how spicy it was.

If it’s part of a series, did this book compel you to read the next one?
Yes. I actually know who the next book is about, and I can’t wait to read it. It’s kind of been hell only reading so many first books in a series as I have been, I have A LOT of series to finish and I’m really excited about it. This one in particular actually. I can’t wait for the next story.

How did the setting impact the story?
I think that with part of the story taking place while they’re on tour, it definately makes for a different setting all the time. But with that always changing, it keeps the characters on their toes and keeps them from settling, which may be part of the problem actually. Once they get back from tour and can settle, it changes the dynamic. So yeah, the setting greatly impacts this story in a fun and dynamic way.

What was your favorite part of the book?
There is a moment, when they’re on tour, that Evan tries to make one of Sienna’s dreams come true. I love it. It’s sweet. I won’t go into too many details because it’s kind of sweet and I don’t want too many spoilers.

Which scene has stuck with you the most?
There is an argument that Evan and Sienna have, and it’s pretty intense. I think about that scene a lot. Both as a reader and as a writer. It was dynamic and so well written that I felt the intensity of the moment. It was difficult to say the least, and admirable as well. I want to emulate that kind of response in my own readers. It was powerful.

What surprised you most about the book?
How much I liked it. Like I said, that first scene between Evan and Sienna, it was a tiny bit off-putting, but not enough for me to put down the story. It was more like, how do we come back from that? I needed to know. I mean, it was what drew me to the book in the first place. It was part of that scene that was on the book of faces that drew me to it. I didn’t expect it to happen quite so quickly, and that took me by surprise. I’m glad I stuck with it though, because it was totally worth it.

How did your opinion of the book change as you read it?
Like I said, the first steamy interaction between Sienna and Evan had me a little confused as to what kind of book I was going to be reading, but it surprised me after that. It was good. I’m glad that I stuck with it, I really am. I liked it enough from what I read on the book of faces, and then I loved the beginning and was excited, I was a little hesitant when it came to the scene and it’s placement, as I’ve already stated. As the story progressed, it got better and I found myself wanting desperately to finish the page I was on so I could turn it and found out what happened next. By the end, I was excited for the extra content because I kept wanting to know what happened next.

Is this book overrated or underrated?
Personally, underrated. It does not get as much attention as it should. This author is amazing and I highly recommend them to everyone who likes a good dirty love story.

Ratings

Overall

This book deserved the five stars, even though it was a bit frustrating at times, it was totally worth it. It earned these stars. With every page.

Heat Level

This totally earned the heat level I gave it. It was amazing. Super amazing. And I loved every thigh clenching moment of it.

I really enjoyed this book, and if you like rockstar romance with a dirty twist, you will too. Check it out, you shouldn’t be disappointed. It’s good. That’s all from me this time, check it out, or anything else by this author, it’s worth your time, I promise. You will never see me promote something that isn’t four stars or more. Ever. Alright, I’m out. Have a great day my friends!

Book Review – Cheeky Royal by Nana Malone

Posted on by Amber Marie in Book Review, Books

This was another Book of Faces rec. I swear they target me so well, and I can’t even be mad anymore. Most of my ads are about books and coffee. It’s like they’ve finally figured me out. So I downloaded this book, the first in a six book series, on Kindle and I guess I should have paid more attention because this book was sooo good that as soon as I was done, I went looking for the next one, only to discover that she’d put only the first book on Kindle Unlimited, the rest were only available in physical copies and audiobook. You bet your ass I ordered that second book.

When searching for the cover for this book for the review, I found out I’m a little late to the party, I mean there’s six books in the series, I’m not surprised, but hey, there used to be different covers for this series, the old cover looked like this.

I honestly can’t tell you which one I prefer. So here’s what I understand about this series. There are two books per character. This one, and the next in the series, Cheeky King, are about Prince Sebastian. It’s a really good story. Which, after reading the Amazon reviews, I was worried I wouldn’t like the writing style. Then again, most of the reviews are people mad because it’s a “story ripped in half” like yeah…. it says Book One on the front of it, on both covers. That usually indicates to me that it’s part of a series, otherwise why include it? Others were mad that it ended on a cliffhanger and felt they should have been warned. I personally hate it if I’m warned of a cliffhanger. Don’t tell me that. Cliffhangers are powerful tools. Kind of like putting the first book on KU and then making me buy the rest. I’m gonna do it, but that was smart from the author perspective.

So, with those mixed reviews on Amazon, and knowing it’s a cliffhanger, and part of a series, here’s what I think.

Penny is a Royal Guard, just like the rest of her family, but it’s not where he passion lies. Her passion is in art. As a Royal Guard, she’s too clumsy, and she doesn’t have a very good opinion of herself. Prince Sebastian, the heir, has been “missing” for six months. No one is quite sure where he really is because he’s employed body doubles, who look enough like him to fool people, to travel the globe and keep up the drinking and womanizing that his reputation expects, only he isn’t going to do those things. He’s looking for his long lost brother. A brother he didn’t even know he had.

King Cassius assigns Penelope a special job, to go undercover, pose as Sebastian’s neighbor and convince him to come home before his birthday in six weeks. Penelope initially turns down the job, thinking she’s not the best one for it. After talking to her best friend, Ariel, and an argument with her boyfriend, she decides to take the assignment after all, if for no other reason than a change in scenery. The plan is simple, her and Ariel form a two man team to watch the Prince, keep him safe, and Penelope has to convince him to come home, all without him realizing who she is. She goes by the name Len, something her parents used to call her when she was young, and moves in next door.

It’s a romance, so hijinks ensue and there’s a lot of ups and downs. They’re both trying to resist the romance of it all for their own reasons. Sebastian is trying to track down his brother and convince him to come back to the Winston Isles. Penelope is a Royal Guard, even though she breaks up with her boyfriend (for a scandalous reason i might add!), she can’t let herself get close to the Prince for obvious reasons. It was good. Really good. I highly recommend, but do yourself a favor, order the second book before you start the first otherwise you’ll be stuck in limbo while you wait for it!

Book Club for Complicated House Plants

Did you think think the first sentence of the book was effective?
Oh yeah. It sets us up perfectly. In one sentence, we understand a little bit about the relationship she has with her parents, and how other people see her. It sets us up to understand her low self-confidence.

How do you feel about the books pacing?
The pacing was good. I felt like it went at the speed it was supposed to go at.

Did you feel the narrator of this book was reliable?
I really liked the dual POV. I think that Sebastian and Penelope were able to give us the reality as they saw it, and that was helpful so that the reader understood what was going on.

Was there a moment when you disagreed with the protagonist’s decisions?
Yes. It’s toward the end of the book, and they both decide they have to tell each other the truth. But they keep letting themselves put it off. They should have had the difficult conversation, even if they didn’t want to.

Did you guess the ending of the book?
I did not see that coming. If you guessed it, you’re a wizard, because I didn’t see it coming at all.

Did you race to the end or was it more of a slow burn?
I’m not gonna lie. I raced there. It was so good I didn’t want to put it down. I kept wanting to know what happened next.

Which character did you like best?
If I’m being completely honest, as much as I loved the two main characters, Sebastian more than Penelope but only a little bit, my favorite character was Ariel. She’s such a great friend. She’s always got Penelope’s back. She’s amazing in her own right as well and that makes me super happy.

Are there any characters you’d like to deliver a lecture to?
Yes. Penelope’s brother Michael and his best friend Robert. They need a very stern talking too, starting with HOW DARE YOU! on so many counts.

Did you like the “heat” level of the book?
Please excuse me while I pull out a fan because damn. It was good. I liked it, and it didn’t feel forced or put in for shock value or anything else. It was good for the story. Especially given what the characters were feeling.

Was the couple’s connection believable?
Yes. On a number of levels. It’s cute that they both remember one another from childhood, even if it’s vaguely. Then to have the relationship they do later on in the book. I love that they start as friends, they encourage each other in their passions, it’s simple. Easy. Without the other titles hanging over their heads. I hope that they remember that after their secrets are revealed.

Well, that’s all I’ve got this time around folks. Trust me, after I get the second book, I’ll let you know how that one was too. I can’t wait. I’m sure this is a series that I will read every book for. I hope you enjoyed this review. Tune in next week for another. Have a fantastic day my dears!

Book Review – Firefighter Griffin by Zoe Chant

Posted on by Amber Marie in Book Review, Books

This is another one of those books that I saw on the book of faces and just had to read. Normally, I don’t read anything in the middle of a series if I know it’s the middle of a series, but this one I made an exception for. I got drawn in by the little boy turning into a lion, climbing a tree, and getting stuck and the poor mom freaking out. So, I sought out the third book in the Fire and Rescue Shifter’s series by Zoe Chant and I’m so glad that I did. It was awesome.

Griff MacCormick is a Scottish shifter who can’t shift. He decides to check out the “prank call” his coworker thinks is just kids messing around. Griff knows better. He had been part of Team Alpha, a fire and rescue squad made entirely of shifters, until something happened to his leg and he couldn’t do it anymore. He can still hear other shifters in his head, and see them, but he can’t shift himself, which is a disappointment.

But, he shows up at Hayley Parker’s house anyway after his shift, which is just after the call comes in, and gets her son Danny down out of the tree. Hayley is NOT a shifter, didn’t even know they were a thing! When Griff tells her that he’s happy she’s moved to the UK from California, since US based Shifters aren’t well protected but the Royal Family make certain that shifters in the UK have some protections. I think the best line I read in the early part of this book is about the Royal family itself, who apparently have been Dragon shifters since the War of the Roses. I loved that. It was an interesting bit of world building that I found humorous.

Griff helps Hayley with Danny. He helps Danny understand what’s happening to him, and how to shift back and forth. He isn’t sure what to do about the fact that Hayley is his mate but there’s something wrong with him, he cannot have her. It’s stressful for both of them. It’s a great book though, filled with lots of colorful characters. It was a thrill to read and I really want to read the rest of the series now. Maybe this winter I will.

Book Club for Complicated House Plants

Did you decide right away if you liked or disliked the book?
Based on the little bit I had read in the preview on the book of faces, I knew I was going to like this. I was so right. From the very beginning it was amazing and everything I could have hoped for. It was sooo good.

What drew you in?
It was the idea that there were shifters and no one knew about them. I’m a sucker for shifters and vampires and paranormal of any kind. I mean I write it so clearly I enjoy it, but I am a sucker for that kind of thing specifically. I loved the idea that someone who was falling apart, was willing to give of themselves to help someone else. I love that.

Who was your favorite character?
John Doe. Hands down. He’s not even a main character but our introduction to him in this book, is him washing dishes while also cooking because he works with water. He hates the voice of the dishwasher and prefers to ask the water nicely for help. I love that. Keep in mind that I haven’t read the rest of the series, just this book, and I loved that that was my first glimpse of him. He’s a fantastic friend to Griff and I just love him okay?

Who was your least favorite character?
Reiner Ljonsson. He could have had a happy relationship with his son, and I’m all for people coming back later to try to have something to do with their kids as long as it’s for the right reasons. His reasoning was flawed and I hated that. It wasn’t okay.

Could you relate to any of the character?
Hayley was extremely relatable. As the mother of six kids, I can’t imagine what my reaction would be to finding out they could shift. And the way she tackles the whole new world that she’s exposed to, that’s goals right there. I loved it. She was awesome, strong, brave, and level headed. It gave me a sort of in to this world that I knew nothing about.

Did you have a favorite line or chapter?
The first time John Doe meets Hayley, it’s kind of a tense situation as everyone from Team Alpha is there and something is wrong with Griff. Hayley is appropriately freaked out. Then John comes in the door, and he is freaking HUGE. He’s a sea dragon in human form. He’s not small. But he’s the epitome of teddy bear. This is what he says when he first encounters her.

He Sank gracefully to one knee in front of her, bowing his head. “My Lady. I am the Walker-Above-Wave, Knight-Poet of the First Water, Guardian of the Pearl Throne, Seeker of the Emperor-in-Absence, Firefighter of the East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, and Griffin’s sworn Oath-Brother. If by my life or my death I can serve you, I will.”

John Doe, Firefighter Griffin by Zoe Chant.

I remember calling a friend and being like YOU HAVE TO HEAR THIS! If this was not the best character introduction I have ever heard, I don’t know what to tell you.

Did you think the couple in the book were a good match?
I did. I love the “true mates/soulmates” trope. I use it in my own writing sometimes. And I love that. In addition to the one perfect mate thing, Griff and Hayley got along well. They wanted similar things and it was easy to see why they would be compatible. As a single mom, I loved that Griff took a shine to Danny immediately and wanted what was best for him, even if he didn’t like it personally.

What was the saddest part of the book?
The fight for dominance between Reiner and Griffin. It was heart breaking because it put Griff into an impossible situation where he knew he would fail, but he had to do it. It hurt my heart so much.

If you could ask the author a question, what would it be?
All of my questions would be John Doe based. How did she create him? How did she decide on his titles? He’s my favorite and this isn’t even his book.

How did you feel about the ending?
The ending fit the book. I saw it coming, but anyone who knows anything about mythology probably would. It was predictable in the best possible way and I loved it! I wouldn’t trade it for something else. It was perfect for the story.

Ratings

Overall Rating

I gave this book five stars. It lived up to every single expectation that I had after reading the preview. It was amazing and I’m so glad that the book of faces recommended it.

Heat Level

I gave this four flames for the heat level. It wasn’t that the heat wasn’t there, it’s just that there wasn’t a lot of it. There are so many other things going on in this book that the steamy romance part got put on the back burner somewhat for the characters. They are dealing with a lot. Though the sexual tension between them is insane and when they do give in, it’s hawt! Very much so. But that’s why there’s only four flames. It was good though.

Well, that’s all for me this week folks. Check out the Fire and Rescue Shifter’s series. Trust me. It’s amazing. I have the next book on my list soon, it’s about John Doe after all, so you know I have to read it. 🙂

Book Review – Curvy Girls Can’t Date Quarterbacks by Kelsie Stelting

Posted on by Amber Marie in Book Review, Books

I really enjoyed this book. It was the first YA book I’ve read in months, and it felt like it, but it was really really good. Then again, when you read a YA book after reading several romance novels that border on erotica, some dark romance, and write steamy paranormal…. reading any YA is gonna be noticeable.
The main characters are all plus size girls and it’s just as much about empowerment as it is the relationship between the main characters, Aurora “Rory” Hutton and Beckett Langley. It also actively tackles the experience of being diagnosed with PCOS, which I feel is SUPER important.
For those of you who don’t already know, PCOS stands for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and has a lot of side effects that women in general find difficult to live with. For a teenager with a super health-conscious mother who obsesses about their weight, I can’t imagine the stress of that. But that’s exactly what Rory deals with on a regular basis. Plus the bullying at school for not being model thin. Let’s be real, High School sucks!

I did really enjoy this book. I loved watching a character who was so frustrated and lonely, gain some understanding of what was happening with her body, and make some great friends who really did love her for who she was. People who saw past what other people critiqued and saw it as simply being human. She finds a romance that we all would have wished for in high school, someone who can see the real you, and embraces that, no matter what anyone else thinks.

Book Club for Complicated House Plants

Curvy Girls Can’t Date Quarterbacks is one of the best books I’ve read recently. I read it on my Kindle as part of the Kindle Unlimited, and it’s the first in a series, of which I intend to read a few more. I recommend them for anyone that wants a fairy tale story with real life elements that include “real” people and “real” problems.

Did you decide right away if you liked or disliked the book?
It took a little bit for me to decide actually. I didn’t immediately hate it, but I didn’t have a strong opinion either way for the first couple of chapters. Which I guess is normal for me, I try to refrain judgement before the world building is set up. I did really like it though, read it rather quickly.

What drew you in?
It was the real life approach very quickly. The beginning was horrifying from the MC’s perspective and I had to keep reading to see what the hell was going on. The immediate addition of complicated real world issues, like PCOS, and the mother’s reaction to finding out, was good. It kept me going.

Who was your favorite character?
Honestly? Beckett Langley. He saw Rory before the bet happened. So for him, everything was real, and important. There were no high stakes for him, just a girl he liked and he went for it. That was it.

Who was your least favorite character?
Oh do I have words for the mother. I mean, she eventually pulls her head out of her ass, but forcing your kid to do a pregnancy test just because they’ve gained a little weight? Especially when they don’t have a lot of friends, let alone guys that they spend time with outside of family…. You’re killing me. You’re doing irreversible harm. And then you sent her to the doctor ALONE to have the testing done? Then you kept harping on her weight like it was the most important thing on the planet? Seriously? You’re a high school teacher, you KNOW how mean kids are, and you acted like that at home too? Ugh. Just ugh. I mean, I think the mom did more emotional damage to Rory than the school bullies did, it’s almost expected of the popular snotty girls, you know the ones, but from your own mom? That was probably a harder pill to swallow.

Did you have a favorite line or chapter?
Not so much a favorite line as a part of the book. After the interaction with the mean girls in health class, where Rory sticks up for herself and anyone else in class like her that is too afraid to speak, the other girls pull her into the AV room, which is amazing. She starts this awesome friendship with these people who are grateful to her for sticking up for them, and they want to help her win this stupid bet. It’s the beginning of a beautiful friendship. All of their antics and hangouts were my favorite. Everyone should have a best friend.

Did any part of the book elicit a strong emotional reaction?
Dude yes. There is this part, after Rory and Beckett start hanging out more, and he invites her to sit with him at lunch, and she does. Except, she used to eat lunch every day in the AV room with her friends. So there‘s this rift that starts growing within the friend group because Rory has Beckett and the friends think she doesn’t need them anymore, and she thinks that their friendship was too good to be true and now that they’ve achieved the goal they set out for, the friendship is over. I felt so sad at that part. I was happy it got worked out, but oh, that part was sad AF to me.

What was your least favorite part of the book?
An honest to goodness tie between the first couple pages and the big reveal by the mean girls of the bet that started everything. It was well written, the issue was more second hand embarrassment. Totally warranted for the storyline though.

Did you find the plot predictable?
Only as predictable as a romance goes. I write them, so I’m familiar with the formula that all romance stories follow, even sort of loosely. It did surprise me along the way though. I knew what was coming according to the standard of the genre, but the way it was written was fresh to me. It didn’t feel like I’d read six or seven harlequin novels in a row. I can’t do that because they get too predictable.

Would you recommend this book to anyone?
Everyone. Especially high schoolers. Read it. Read the series, I’m going to.

How did you feel about the ending?
I loved it. I felt like it fit the story well. It made me want to read the rest of the series. 🙂 For an author I’d never read before, I was an instant fan.

Rating:

I gave this book 5 stars. It was exactly what I expected and I loved it. I read it rather quickly, and at no point did I have to put it down and give myself some space due to writing style, content, any of it. I loved that the characters felt real and not flat, which sometimes happens with secondary characters. It was nice that they all felt like they wanted me to think they were the main character. I loved that.

Well, I’m out for now. I’ll see you next Thursday for the next review! Stay awesome my loves!

Book Review – Shattered Altar by Nicole Fox

Posted on by Amber Marie in Book Review, Books
Book Cover for Shattered Altar by Nicole Fox

I have never been so angry to have read something on my Kindle app rather than in a physical book before. When I tell you that I wanted so badly to throw my phone when I got to the cliffhanger ending of this book….I yelled in frustration, making the baby in the apartment above me start crying. And all I could think was “same baby, same.”

This book was fantastic. Shattered Altar by Nicole Fox, I have never clicked on a sequel so fast in my life. Just when you think everything might be okay, boom! Nope. So, I’m going to recommend this book, and trust me, it’s gonna end up in time out. I highly recommend getting a physical copy of it just to be able to put it in book time out. I swear.

Shattered Altar is about a young woman, Olivia, who’s on her way home from New York to see her family for the holidays. Well, as in usual fashion, her flight gets delayed and she goes off in search of coffee. A stranger sits down next to her at the cafe in the airport and they get to talking. Dude is sexy and she starts thinking that it might not be so bad to live a little like her sister Mia urges her to do. Aleksandr, or Aleks as he prefers to be called, takes her to find good coffee in the airport since they’re on the same delayed flight. Though I wasn’t sure how 5 hours passed so quickly, the sexual tension between Olivia and Aleks was obvious. As soon as we got to his POV, I knew he couldn’t be trusted, he stated as much, but as the reader, I didn’t know why.

This book is filled with ups and downs and twists and turns and the frustration on both Aleks and Olivia’s parts that comes with falling for someone you shouldn’t. There’s forced marriage, blackmail, intrigue, missing persons who aren’t actually missing, and possibly an accidental pregnancy. It’s so good. You have to go read it.

Book Club for Complicated House Plants

What was your favorite part of the book?
My favorite part of the book was the beginning and the meet-cute. It was so surreal and for a moment I thought we were edging into the way I had originally written the beginning of Blood Song, so it was a bit trippy for me. It changed quickly after that so there wasn’t any chance of it being anywhere close to the same story, but I was drawn right in. I also really enjoyed the scenes at the lake.

Did you race to the end or was it a slow burn?
I read this book in just a couple of days. I could have finished it last night but I watched a couple episodes of a show with my kids instead. This book sucks you in and keeps you reading to find out what will happen next.

Would you want to read another book by this author?
I have already downloaded the sequel and want to type this as quickly as possible so I can get back to it. Nicole Fox seems to have quite the backlist going and I want to devour them all. Especially if they are as good as this one.

How does the book title work in relation to the books contents?
At first I was confused at how the title related to the story, but now that I’ve finished the book, it makes so much sense, and I already know how the second one will relate to the story I’m imagining. I cannot wait, I don’t think I’ve mentioned yet how much I want to read the sequel…and it’s not on the summer reading list you guys!

Who do you most want to read this book?
Stephanie of course. She would love this. Otherwise, anyone who loves the mafia don trope, you will love this. If you’re afraid of the steamy or the spice, stay away, but if not, read this. Please. Add it to your summer reading list. I promise you won’t regret it.

Are there lingering questions from the book you’re still thinking about?
So many. What will Aleks reaction be to finding out that Olivia is gone? What new challenges will Olivia face now that she’s been taken somewhere “Safe”? What is going to happen to the person that helped Olivia escape? Are Olivia’s suspicions confirmed? Will Aleks and Olivia admit their true feelings for one another? As you can see, I have a lot of questions.

Which characters did you like best?
I absolutely love Olivia and Aleks. I love watching them try to fight what’s right in front of them for obvious and logical reasons. Too bad love doesn’t care about logic. I also really enjoyed Olivia’s sister Mia and Aleks best friend, Demyen. I think he’s the perfect foil for Aleks. He calls him on his bull and isn’t afraid of him, though he respects him not only as the Bratva Don he is, but as a friend and that is much more important in that line of work, one would think.

Did you like the heat level of this book?
Dude yes. I loved it. My favorite part of it, nothing was forced or coerced. It was all done willingly. There was no fraud involved in the spicy scenes. The heat level was fabulous.

Was the couple’s connection believable? If so, at what point did they click for you?
Okay, I was a sucker for them in the beginning, and fell head long into their connection. There was obvious chemistry happening between them. After the startling turn of events, I liked that they both fought that obvious chemistry and that Aleks never used his position of power over Olivia to get anything sexual from her, not even a kiss. I liked that the internal struggle of falling for someone you had no business falling for was present and that they fought it. I like the inclusion of shame for Olivia that came with every time she gave in just a little bit, or thought about it. It made it more real. More believable. I also liked that every time they fought, a little more of their true feelings came to the surface.

What do you think happens to the leads after the ending?
I think that after Aleks finds out that Olivia is gone, heads will roll, literally and figuratively. Especially after he finds out where she ended up. I think that Olivia is going to quickly realize that Aleks was telling the truth when he said he was trying to keep her safe and that running was probably the worst idea she’s ever had.

Ratings

I gave this book 5 stars because obviously I wanted to throw it at the awall and it needed a book time out so often. The writing was great, I enjoyed the story, and very mjuch look forward to reading more of Nicole Fox’s work.

Five Stars

This book got a 5 flame heat rating. The spice was on point, just enough detail to really make it believable, but not too much graphic descirption to cross over into erotica areas. Also, it was never coerced or forced and that made all the difference for me. Despite everything, if it ever had been, that would have crossed too many lines for Aleks to be a redeemable character in my book.

Five Flames

Okay, so that’s the review for Shattered Altar. Read it. Enjoy it. Be prepared to throw it at the end. Seriously. Do yourself a favor, get the second book as well, because you’re going to want to tstart that one as soon as you’re done with the first one. I’m out for today, as always my beautiful people, be safe, drink your water, don’t eat yellow snow, and have an adventure, even if it’s just on the pages of a book while you enjoy the nice weather.

Bye Bye Butterfly