BLOG TOUR: Stupid Boy - Cindy Miles + Review + GIVEAWAY!

Book & Author details:

Stupid Boy by Cindy Miles 

(Stupid in Love #2) 

Publication date: February 17th 2015

Genres: New Adult, Romance

Synopsis:

From Cindy Miles, bestselling new adult author of STUPID GIRL, comes the next installment of her blockbuster Stupid in Loveseries – STUPID BOY.

Brax Jenkins and Olivia Beaumont are the most envied couple at Winston University—but the so-called “virginity dare,” orchestrated by Brax’s old fraternity, almost tore them apart. Now, a new dare is taking shape, and it’s sure to set emotions ablaze–more than ever before.

Winston’s “It Girl” Harper Belle isn’t just president of the Deltas–she’s also a master at keeping her ugly past a secret. So, when the Kappas’ dare hits closer to home for her more than anyone realizes, she devises a competition of her own as payback. Three sorority sisters will seek out a notorious womanizer on campus and–unbeknownst their “mark”–secretly train him to be the perfect boyfriend. Always up for a challenge, Harper targets the biggest player she can find: Brax’s wickedly handsome foster brother Kane McCarthy.

But, Harper discovers there’s much more to Kane than girls, games, and partying. His easy smile belies the quiet, old soul reflected in his deep brown eyes. All it takes is one night, one secret laid bare, and one kiss from Kane to shift Harper’s world on its axis. Suddenly, the girl who’s always walked a straight and narrow path can’t think of anything else except losing control.

Goodreads

Purchase: 

Amazon | B&N

REVIEW: 

**Disclaimer: I received this book via Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. Any thoughts and opinions are my own.** 
This is part of a series but can be read as a stand-alone. 
Stupid Boy is far from being stupid. Cindy Miles does an incredible job in wrapping a light-hearted, silly story of a dare around a heart-warming story of how love can heal a person's heart. I did not expect this book to turn out the way that it did. I was expecting it to be a superficial story of two young, hard-headed college kids. 
Harper Belle was my favorite character. I love how Miles weaved her secret past into the story and made it a catalyst to bringing her and Kane together. Their sordid pasts and painful memories allows them a way to relate to each other and get to know the real people behind the facades they put up for their friends. They were both trying to handle their issues on their own all while keeping those issues a secret and to see how strong they both were in the midst of all they were going through was very emotional. The character development in this book progresses very well and you are able to see how the relationship between Harper and Kane changes. This was a quick read for me, the pacing was fast and kept you interested through out the whole story. 
This was the first book I've read by Cindy Miles but I will definitely be adding her other works to my TBR! 

AUTHOR BIO:

National bestselling author Cindy Miles writes edgy romance, ranging from contemporary love stories to sexy paranormals. A native of southern coastal Georgia, she loves reading (naturally), baking swoon-worthy desserts, traveling abroad, yoga, and classic rock. The cover for her debut New Adult romance, STUPID GIRL, was featured on USA Today’s Happily Ever After blog. In the novel, a volatile mix of bad boys, sassy smart girls, dark secrets, and red-hot romance add up to one wild ride through college. The second book in her Stupid in Love series, STUPID BOY, features a wickedly handsome law-breaker who falls for a beautiful, straight-A college student with an ugly past of her own.

Author links:

Cindy-Miles.com

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

VIRTUAL TOUR: Secrets: Diary of A Gutsy Teen - Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein + $20 Amazon/BN Gift Card Giveaway!!

BLURB:

Following in the footsteps of The Truth, Secrets: Diary of a Gutsy Teen begins as the thirteen-year-old protagonist makes a move with her family to a new town. She has grown up a lot over the past year—and has made a list of everything that’s important to her now that she doesn’t want to forget when she gets older. But now, as she enters her early teen years, she begins to write down the secrets she wants to keep—and the ones she has no one to tell about. From new school experiences to a new baby in the family to a new crush, this new teen finally feels empowered on making her own decisions with confidence and keeping those secrets she holds dearest for herself.

In a positive and supportive diary-entry format, Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein encourages tween and early teen girls to carry the most precious parts of themselves into adulthood. A great book for mothers and daughters to read together, Secrets is aimed to improve communication, understanding, and self-esteem for young girls as they enter the rocky road of teenager-dom.

EXCERPT

Date: June 27

Dear Diary,

I can’t believe it. Today we moved, and I feel like I’m in a dream. I just keep walking around our new house and wondering when we will go home. It feels so different and strange.

Everything is on one floor (that’s called a ranch house). The floors are all bare wood. My mom said our rugs would look terrible here so she let the people who bought our old house keep them. I think she was probably right. They were a dark maroon and the walls here are a light cream. I don’t think that would look good.

I went to the bathroom three times since we got here and every time I used a different

bathroom. I can’t believe it. Three different toilets in the same house! Only my friend

Susan, my rich friend, had more than two bathrooms in her house. And four bedrooms!

And a family room. I can’t believe we have this much space now.

When I look out of the windows I expect to see the shrubs and the Hudson’s house who were next to us on the left, but I don’t. Instead, I see a big open field that will probably have houses built on it by next year. That’s what my dad said anyway. And when I look out to the right I expect to see our clothesline and the Dixon’s driveway, but instead I see rose bushes and a wooden bench under a tree that the last owners said we

could have.

Tonight, we had to eat supper off paper plates and use plastic forks, knives, and

spoons because our boxes are still packed. My aunt made us a big picnic basket full of

food and that’s what we ate for supper. It was delicious. There was fried chicken, potato salad and potato chips, cupcakes for dessert, and fruit salad. And at the bottom of the basket under the ice was a whole package of Hershey Kisses. Yum!

My brother already started to play with a kid next door who’s about a year older than he

is. He’s so lucky. I have no new friends yet and that’s the truth!

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

I have been a positive psychologist in private practice for the past thirty years. In the course of working with my clients, I originated the idea of THE ENCHANTED SELF(R), a positive psychology therapy where I teach people how to recognize and utilize their strengths, talents, skills and even lost potential. I have developed a number of methods, including using our memories to rediscover what is right about ourselves and our lives, rather than what went wrong, helping people to overcome adversity, experience positive emotions and live the good life!

Since developing this concept, I've been able to use many tools to bring the Enchanted Self to everyone, particularly women and girls. I've written many books, starting with THE ENCHANTED SELF, A Positive Therapy, and then Recipes for Enchantment, The Secret Ingredient is YOU!  My books for girls are very popular, as they are great fictional reads and also help deal with many of the questions that trouble kids as they move into the tween and teen years.  The Truth, Diary of a Gutsy Tween and Secrets, Diary of a Gutsy Teen are the first two books in this series.

I really love to teach and educate about happiness and how to benefit from positive psychology in ways that let us lead lives of meaning and happiness. You can find me all over the place on the web.

EnchantedSelf.com

TheTruthForGirls.com

Facebook

Pinterest

Barnes and Noble

Amazon

Goodreads

Enter to win a $20 Amazon/BN GC   a Rafflecopter giveaway

REVIEW: Books, Blogs, & Reality - Ryan Ringbloom

**Disclaimer: I received this book via Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. Any thoughts and opinions are of my own.**

BOOK DETAILS:

Books, Blogs, & Reality 
Ryan Ringbloom 
Publication date: October 24th 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Synopsis:
Life can suck…

When reality becomes overwhelming, seeking comfort in fictional fantasies keeps hope alive. And while this escape may be a little delusional, it’s also therapeutic.

Sharing secrets is daunting, but virtual friends don’t often judge and they are always ready to share a glass of wine…or three…while typing out life’s latest endeavors.

Brooke believes obstacles only add to romance, not detract. Rachael longs for a more intense relationship, or so she thinks. Lizzie misses the excitement in her life, but sometimes new situations find you when you’re not even looking. And Jess believes a tiger can change his stripes. It can’t.

Bound by a shared passion for blogging about happily ever afters, these four young women use keyboard therapy to work through their expectations, anxieties, and inadequacies, all with the hopes of achieving the perfection found in romance novels.

Completely blinded by what they think life should be, they navigate their unique paths in search of what they envision is right. But when reality taunts them with persistent curve balls, will they be strong enough to choose wisely? Or will their happy endings escape them? Review: 
I was so excited to read this book because as a book blogger, why wouldn't I want to read it? And, anyone who has lurked around this blog long enough knows that I'm a sucker for a good romance. This book promise both of those things so I couldn't resist!  I really like how well the different parts of this book flowed together. Between the different girls' stories, the nightly chats with all four of them, and their reviews, interviews, blog stuffs, etc. It just felt natural. This was a quick, easy read because it didn't feel forced or overly done. It was good, light-hearted fun.  Some of the romance part of the book was a little predictable and there were some cliches here and there but it was still a pleasant read. So many people, including myself (Ella's not my real name), only allow you to see what they want you to see online so I thought that it was very fitting for the girls to be somewhat dishonest with each other at first. I loved that they formed a little tight-nit group, though. I would love to have a little blogging friends group like they do so it was really enjoyable for me to read of a dynamic like that.  I recommend this if you're looking for a quick, easy read maybe on the beach, relaxing while the kids are playing outside, or maybe even on your commute to work. 

REVIEW: Bloodlines - Vanessa Skye

**Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a honest review. Any thoughts and opinions are my own.** 
Bloodlines by Vanessa Skye

Following the acclaimed debut of The Enemy Inside and its sequel, Broken, comes the stunning conclusion to the ‘Edge of Darkness’ series by investigative journalist Vanessa Skye, Blood Lines. Detective Alicia “Berg” Raymond is lying. She’s lying to the Chicago Police Department, to her boyfriend, Captain Jay O’Loughlin, but most of all, she’s lying to herself—about her past, her future, and her ongoing addiction. As Berg investigates a series of brutal rapes and sinks under an ever-increasing caseload, she finds herself juggling every aspect of her life—finding justice for victims of crime, keeping her own sordid past buried from her colleagues, struggling with blackmail that threatens to push her over the edge, and protecting her lover from the details of all of it. Wrapping her damaged head around living in a state of domestic bliss she’s certain she doesn’t deserve, Berg is driven by the need for justice and a determination to stop a rapist before any more innocent lives are ravaged. But when enemies from the past threaten her present, she is once again vulnerable to the demons that have plagued her every day of her life. It’s only a matter of time before her lies unravel and the fairy tale she’s finally started believing implodes . . . but the biggest threat of all, as it turns out, is her very own bloodline. Can she save herself, and the casualties of crime, from the lurking darkness waiting to strike, or will her own mistakes drag her under—this time for good?  

I have not read the other two books in this series but this one can definitely be read as a stand-alone. This book was SO good! Berg was my favorite character for several reasons but most importantly because I could understand the apprehension of letting your guard down around people. Berg's unwillingness to forgive herself for terrible things she did in the past is part of what drives her to continue to make terrible mistakes in her life. Including mistakes that involve colleagues. And some of her choices will really throw you for a loop if you're like me and didn't see it coming! Berg's relationship with Jay is very endearing and one of the best parts of this book because it's her motivation to save him that ultimately saves her.

Just when Berg thinks that parts of her past are finally behind her and buried deep where no one will find them, her bloodlines bring all her dirty secrets out in the open. And they don't just threaten to expose her, they threaten her life and the life of the one man she loves more than anything. I don't want to give away too much but you have to read this book! The action scenes are amazing and there are some pretty raunchy sex scenes that will have you blushing! 

I cannot wait until I read the other two books in this series. Vanessa Skye is a great writer and gives her characters so much depth and soul that you will feel like you're right there in the story with them. 

Check out the book tour and interview with Vanessa Skye