Book of the Month - November

The books I read this month:

-       Beautiful Player – by Christina Lauren 5/5

-       Some kind of Wonderful – by Sarah Morgan 4/5

-       Beautiful Beginning – by Christina Lauren 5/5

-       Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses – by Jenny Hale 5/5

-       Dream a Little Christmas Dream – by Giovanna Fletcher 4.5/5

-       A Girl’s Best Friend – by Lindsey Kelk 5/5

-       How To Stuff Up Christmas – by Rosie Blake 4.5/5

-       Every Time a Bell Rings – by Carmel Harrington 5/5

-       Christmas Ever After – by Sarah Morgan 4.5/5
-       Deck the Halls - by Erin Lawless 5/5

-       Tinsel and Terriers (Primrose Terrace, Book 4) – by Cressida McLaughlin 5/5

A great reading months, full of magical Christmas stories and some others, here are my faves:

Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses – Jenny Hale

The bit on the back:

An uplifting, beautiful story about never letting go of your dreams, the special magic of a family Christmas… and the rush of falling in love under the mistletoe.

Single mother Abbey Fuller loves her family more than anything, and doesn’t regret for a moment having had to put her dreams of being an interior designer on hold. But with her son, Max, growing up, when a friend recommends her for a small design job she jumps at the chance. How hard can it be?

Nick Sinclair needs his house decorated in time for his family’s festive visit – and money is no object. What he doesn’t need is to be distracted from his multi-million dollar business – even if it is Christmas.

When Abbey pulls up to the huge Sinclair mansion, she has a feeling she might be out of her depth. And when she meets the gorgeous, brooding Nicholas Sinclair, she knows that she’s in real trouble…

With the snow falling all around, can Abbey take the chance to make her dreams of being a designer come true? And can she help Nick to finally enjoy the magic of Christmas?

My opinion:

Jenny Hale did it once again. She created a PERFECT, MAGICAL, FESTIVE and ADORABLE read! It will mae your heart warm up and leave a smile on your face. It’s a remarkable book full of love, sweetness, life lessons and much more!!!

Jenny on Twitter: @jhaleauthor

Website: http://itsjennyhale.com

Goodreads - Amazon UK  - Amazon US

Every Time a Bell Rings – Carmel Harrington

The bit on the back:

An angel gets its wings…

Belle has taken all the Christmas decorations down. This year they won’t be celebrating.

As foster parents, Belle and Jim have given many children the chance of a happier start in life. They’ve loved them as if they were their own. They shouldn’t have favourites but little Lauren has touched their hearts. And now her mother is well enough to take her back and Belle can’t bear the loss.

Hence, Christmas is cancelled.

So when Jim crashes his car one icy December night, after an argument about Lauren, Belle can only blame herself. Everything she loves is lost. And Belle finds herself standing on The Ha’Penny Bridge wishing she had never been born.

But what happens to a Christmas wish when an angel is listening…

Will Belle realise, before it’s too late, that her life is the most wonderful life of all?

Inspired by the timeless tale of beloved Christmas movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, Carmel Harrington’s next book tells the story of Belle, a young woman and foster carer from Dublin who faces the hardest decision of her life this Christmas on The Ha’Penny Bridge.

Full of Irish charm, magic, and the warmth of the festive season this is an emotional, heartwarming story that will stay with you long after you’ve reached ‘The End’. Perfect for fans of Cecelia Ahern & Jojo Moyes.

Carmel is the bestselling author of The Life You Left & Beyond Grace’s Rainbow, voted Romantic eBook of the Year 2013.

My opinion:

A MAGCIAL and FESTIVE Christmas read! This book is emotinla, touching and heart-warming. Carmel’s writing is spot on in several ways, I fell in love with this story immediately when reading the prefct prologue.

Carmel on Twitter: @HappyMrsH

Website: http://carmelharrington.com

Goodreads - Amazon UK - Amazon US

Beautiful Player – by Christina Lauren

Original Cover

My own copy 

The blurb:

A bombshell bookworm. A chronic Casanova. And a lesson in chemistry too scandalous for school.

When Hanna Bergstrom receives a lecture from her overprotective brother about neglecting her social life and burying herself in grad school, she’s determined to tackle his implied assignment: get out, make friends, start dating. And who better to turn her into the sultry siren every man wants than her brother’s gorgeous best friend, Will Sumner, venture capitalist and unapologetic playboy?

Will takes risks for a living, but he’s skeptical about this challenge of Hanna’s…until the wild night his innocently seductive pupil tempts him into bed- and teaches him a thing or two about being with a woman he can’t forget. Now that Hanna’s discovered the power of her own sex appeal, it’s up to Will to prove he’s the only man she’ll ever need.

My Opinion:

After

Beautiful Bastard and Beautiful Stranger I was really excited to finally read book #3 of the series. I’ve already read the little stories in between, which were also great. I have to say this is definitely my favourite out of all of them! Hanna and Will had so much chemistry and I just loved how their story developed.

The story follows Hanna Bergstrom, she is 24 years old and practically buries herself in lab work. Her brother doesn’t like that and wants her to get out more. He tells her to call his old friend Will Sumner. We already know Will because he works for Max and he also went to Vegas with the guys. Will might be a playboy at the beginning oft he book, but I still liked him from the start. Hanna changed something in him, that was pretty obvious. He was just awesome though, I think I fell for him myself.

Hanna knows Will from her childhood. He spent a lot of time with Jensen and also at their house. You could say she had a crush on him ;) When they meet again fort he first time, even on the phone at first the connection is there immediately.

At first they are just friends and when Hanna needs help of how to date men, Will is there to help. That develops into something passionate, sexy and so much more. But Hanna can’t really believe that he can change though, with all his women around. And Will?! Well, he is completely falling for her!!! Reading about his feelings for her and all the emotions connected to it, made me like him even more. I understood her completely as well though and that’s what makes this switching between perspectives so great. You feel connected to both main characters.

I loved the way their story developed and I really enjoyed all of their scenes. Whenever they were not together I was sad. The weekend at her parent’s house was lets say steamy and exciting and funny! I think what Hanna and Will have is really special and I was just hoping for them to find a way to be together!

Another aspect I really loved about this story was that we got to read about Sara, Max, Chloe and Bennett from time to time as well. Whether it was the three guys, the three ladies or all of them together. I think they are a great bunch and I really hope we will hear much more about them!!!

Also: Will is definitely my fave out of the guys ;) So protective, but also sexy, caring and gorgeous!!!

Another brilliant and fabulous book by Christina Lauren, with exciting scenes, great moments, an awesome couple and so much more!!! Def my fave out of the series and I think the storyline had a wonderful flow. I had to dive right into Beautiful Beginning, because this series is just AMAZING!!!

Rating:

My possible cast:

Hanna: Lyndsy Fonesca

William: Henry Cavill

Christina Lauren on Twitter: @ChristinaLauren
Website: http://christinalaurenbooks.com
Goodreads - Amazon UK - Amazon US

Book Tour - Wish upon a Christmas Cake by Darcie Boleyn + Excerpts

The most wonderful time of the year?

Katie Warham has just one wish this year…to have the best Christmas ever!

If only she could lock herself away in a cloud of flour and sugar at her cosy little tearoom, Crumbtious Cakes, instead of spending the festive season trapped with her judgemental mother, crazy Aunt Gina and loved-up celebrity brother Carl…

But Katie never expected her ex-boyfriend, widower Sam – and his two adorable children – to turn up on her doorstep. She didn’t think that any man could tempt her under the mistletoe this year, but Sam might just prove the exception! And as the snow begins to fall and Katie puts the final touches to her famous Christmas cake, she begins to wonder, could her Christmas wish actually come true?

This holiday season, snuggle up by a roaring fire with a mulled wine and enjoy Darcie Boleyn’s festive winter warmer!

Excerpt 1

Ann appeared in the doorway with two large mugs and I grinned, anticipating what delights she had created. When she handed me my mug, I wasn’t disappointed. The surface of the drink was frothy with whipped cream and when I sniffed it, the warming aromas of ginger and cinnamon made my mouth water. I couldn’t resist sticking my finger into the cream and scooping out one of our homemade gingerbread marshmallows. I placed it on my tongue and allowed it to slowly melt there, the sugary surface soon giving way to a soft and gooey centre.

‘Good?’ Ann asked as she sat next to me and grinned at me from beneath a whipped cream moustache.

‘Heavenly.’ I raised my mug to my lips and blew on the liquid, eager to cool it down and drink it. We sat like that, in the companionable silence of good friends, as we consumed our calorific hot chocolates and I could feel the strains of the day slipping away from me until I was almost comatose.

Ann turned in her seat to look at me. ‘So do you want to talk about it?’ Trust her to wait until I was too relaxed to put up a fight. I shrugged.

How many times could we discuss the same old things?”

Excerpt 2

I parked, climbed out and hitched my stretchy jeans up over my tummy, wriggling from side to side as I did so, then I opened the boot. As I reached over to lift out the box of cakes, I heard footsteps behind me.

‘Hi there. Need a hand?’

The voice was deep, soft and knee-tremblingly sexy. Somewhere in the depths of my mind, it sparked a memory. Sensations. Emotions. Tummy butterflies. Then I realised that whoever it was would be getting a good view of my butt and I did a mental sigh.

I turned slowly – taking care not to bump my already tender head, as I brought the box from the boot – and saw the broadest chest I had ever seen in my life. I could have ironed a king-sized duvet cover on it. I gripped the box tighter, suddenly afraid that my wanton fingers would release it in their hurry to caress those gorgeous pecs so obvious beneath the tight-fitting grey polo shirt.

‘Are you okay?’ That voice again like melted chocolate, running through my fingers, over my tongue. My legs started shaking. Get a grip, Katie. Look up. See who it is. Although I already knew. I raised my eyes slowly, memorizing every muscle beneath the clothing that I didn’t want to be there and saw…

“Sam? Is that really you?’ My stomach dropped to my boots.

Excerpt 3

“Sorry?’ He was so close now that I could enjoy his scent. Fresh citrus shower gel mingled with something deeper and sexier like cloves and cinnamon. I closed my eyes and licked my lips.

‘Daddy, why is Katie sleeping standing up?’ I blinked quickly and my cheeks flushed. Ooops!

‘She’s just a bit tired this morning, Holly,’ Sam said to the tiny person at his side.

‘I thought she was after a kiss under the mistletoe,’ Jack said as he pointed to the previously unnoticed greenery above our heads. Who had put that there?

‘Well I’d hate to disappoint a lady.’ Sam grinned at me and my insides somersaulted. He wasn’t serious?

‘Go on then Daddy.’ Holly shook Sam’s hand. ‘Kiss her.’

‘Katie?’ Sam raised his eyebrows and released his children’s hands. He leaned forwards and whispered in my ear, ‘I guess it couldn’t hurt.’

What choice did we have? It would look strange now if I refused. I had no choice. Really.

Author Bio

Darcie Boleyn has a huge heart and is a real softy. She never fails to cry at books and movies, whether the ending is happy or not. Darcie is in possession of an overactive imagination that often keeps her awake at night. Her childhood dream was to become a Jedi but she hasn’t yet found suitable transport to take her to a galaxy far, far away. She also has reservations about how she’d look in a gold bikini, as she rather enjoys red wine, cheese and loves anything with ginger or cherries in it – especially chocolate. Darcie fell in love in New York, got married in the snow, rescues uncoordinated greyhounds and can usually be found reading or typing away on her laptop.

Author Links

Twitter: https://twitter.com/darcieboleyn

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/public/Darcie-Boleyn

Blog: https://pinkinkladies.wordpress.com/darcie-boleyn/

Book Links

AMAZON UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wish-Upon-A-Christmas-Cake-ebook/dp/B0150UO9XS

AMAZON.COM: http://www.amazon.com/Wish-Upon-Christmas-Darcie-Boleyn-ebook/dp/B0150UO9XS/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

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