Double Feature Review: Dating and Mating

By Sara Steven

Siding with Plato by Michelle Manning

Brooke Aarons can't get to college fast enough. Leaving behind her small town life, she intends to transform herself into a brilliant psychologist with no distractions along the way. But when she finds herself on a double date with the school's star football player - and worse, enjoying it - Brooke has to wonder if she's the one who needs her head examined. James Cartwright's easy life, endless bucks, and long line of willing girls should make him a non-starter for Brooke, but as she learns, the psychology behind a bad crush is a whole lot messier of a subject. Maybe Plato was right. Maybe love is a serious mental disease. If so, Brooke doesn't have long to find a cure before James's attention proves to be a terminal condition. (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads)

Siding with Plato reminded me of the 90’s teen and college drama television shows I used to watch during the glory days of my youth; very Beverly Hills, 90210. I felt like I was along for the ride with Brooke while she’s venturing outside of the life she’s known, meeting new and interesting college friends who later become her closest allies. There are cute frat boys who live right across the hall, introducing Brooke to all the coolest college parties and raves. We can’t forget the mean girls; the college sorority chicks who set out to make Brooke’s life absolutely miserable. There’s even the neighborhood coffee shop stoner!

When Brooke falls for James, I get the feeling he’s that first real crush, the one you never, ever forget. There are a lot of ups and downs for this couple, and even at the end of the book, you’re left wondering what’s next for Brooke and James. Will they work out, or is James a stepping stone to someone more suited for Brooke? Maybe this will segue into a sequel, where we fast forward five years and find out what’s become of not just Brooke and James, but the other characters, too, especially the coffee shop stoner and the mean sorority girls. I’d love to hear how their lives turned out.

Plato is a sweet read and just the kind of book that will satisfy your own need for nostalgia. I know it did for mine!

Thanks to Authoright for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Maybe Tonight 
by Kim Golden

I thoroughly enjoyed Kim Golden’s Maybe Baby, a love story told entirely from lead character Laney’s perspective. When I heard that Kim had written a follow-up novella that offers the chance to better understand Mads, Laney’s love interest, I jumped at the opportunity.

In Maybe Tonight, we’re given the back story into how Mads met Laney. It all began with a chance encounter at a mixer for a progressive sperm donor organization, where Laney attends as a potential client, and Mads as a potential donor. From this bizarre circumstance, a love story begins. Usually, we’re only offered up one character’s insight into a story and have to guess or imagine how the other characters are feeling or thinking, but Tonight gives us better clarity into what makes Laney and Mads work, the struggles they face while dealing with very difficult yet entirely fathomable situations.

Although much of the novella contains repeated scenes told in Maybe Baby, I felt the story line continued because it didn’t just end with Laney. A lot more has been revealed by gaining Mads’ perspective. There is a struggle within him to be with the woman he loves, although she’s not entirely available. He wants to branch out and do more with his passion in life (he’s a carpenter) yet he feels he can’t afford to leave his side job with the sperm donor organization. Imagine running into a client on the street, and she’s pushing a baby in the stroller. A baby who you’ve helped create. One who you know you’ll never be able to interact with or be involved with. It's a bi-product of his side job. His side job is crushing his spirit.

Before reading Maybe Tonight, I highly suggest reading Maybe Baby, first. The two go hand in hand. You’ll enjoy the love story between these two, however unconventional it might be, and that’s what’s so great about it. An awkward, real, and raw look at how two people destined for entirely different life experiences have come together to forge their own path.

Thanks to Kim Golden for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Eight Hundred Grapes

There are secrets you share, and secrets you hide…

Growing up on her family’s Sonoma vineyard, Georgia Ford learned some important secrets. The secret number of grapes it takes to make a bottle of wine: eight hundred. The secret ingredient in her mother’s lasagna: chocolate. The secret behind ending a fight: hold hands.

But just a week before her wedding, thirty-year-old Georgia discovers her beloved fiancé has been keeping a secret so explosive, it will change their lives forever.

Georgia does what she’s always done: she returns to the family vineyard, expecting the comfort of her long-married parents, and her brothers, and everything familiar. But it turns out her fiancé is not the only one who’s been keeping secrets… (Synopsis courtesy of Goodreads.)

Amy Bromberg:

I’ve only been to California once, and that was to San Francisco for only two days. I’m not a drinker so I’ve never had a desire to go to the Wine Country. Well, that all has changed since reading Eight Hundred Grapes. Now I know the next time I go to California (unfortunately I don’t see this happening in the near future), visiting Sonoma and the Wine Country will definitely be part of the trip!

I enjoyed many facets of Eight Hundred Grapes. The way Laura describes the family’s vineyard is filled with such vivid imagery and detailed descriptions. The fact that many of the characters have secrets and flaws, made the story that much more authentic and relatable. These two qualities also describe Georgia perfectly. She had to deal with a multitude of things all at once. Unfortunately many people can identify with this, including myself. I also enjoyed how past memories were interwoven throughout the story.

I highly recommend adding this to your summer reads list! It will make an excellent companion for a weekend at the beach or a day at the pool.

Melissa Amster:

I've never had much interest in wineries, as I drink wine on a minimal basis (mostly on Shabbat). However, Laura Dave's description of the Last Straw Vineyard made me interested in going on a winery tour sometime. It was fascinating to learn the intricacies of the wine-making process. Definitely something I'll be thinking about the next time I have a drink after my husband makes Kiddush.

What I really liked about Eight Hundred Grapes, and what set it apart from most of the novels I read, is the family dynamic that winds throughout the story. It wasn't just about Georgia, but also about her parents and brothers, as well as their relationships with each other, with romantic partners, and with Georgia herself. This moved the dialogue along at a strong and steady pace. There were some intense moments, as well. I normally don't get into TV shows and movies that focus on big families, with the exception of Modern Family, which is a comedy. However, after reading Eight Hundred Grapes, I became more inclined to finally check out Parenthood. (Some pushing from my friends helped with that too.) And I'm glad I did!

This is my first experience reading a novel by Laura Dave. I don't know what her writing style is in her other novels, but I do know that she uses description really well, allowing readers to easily visualize the people and scenery. I especially enjoyed the food descriptions. (I want Georgia to take me for pancakes at her favorite café!) However, Laura tends to rely on cliché phrases and sometimes a scene or conversation would just drop off at the end of a chapter instead of building on to the next one. The latter didn't happen all the time, but still enough to be noticeable. While I was worried the story would be predictable, there were a lot of twists and surprises, and the plot kept me guessing.

Overall, a relatable and compelling story. I'm glad I gave it a chance.

I know that Eight Hundred Grapes has been optioned for film and I'd be interested to see how it plays out. I hope a Hollywood executive sees this review though...
Georgia: Shenae Grimes-Beech
Jen (Georgia's mom): Jessica Lange
Dan (Georgia's dad): Scott Bakula
Ben (Georgia's fiancé): Henry Cavill
Finn (Georgia's brother): Ryan Eggold (I couldn't think of anyone to play Bobby though!)
Jacob (Works at rival winery): Brandon Routh
Margaret (Bobby's wife): Brooklyn Decker

Thanks to Simon and Schuster for the book in exchange for an honest review.

More by Laura Dave:

Jenna McCarthy tells us something good...plus a book giveaway

Jenna McCarthy is delightful to work with. She comes to us with such positive energy and a great sense of humor. When she found out that my copy of her brand new novel, Pretty Much Screwed, hadn't arrived yet, she immediately checked in with her publisher to find out what was going on. That stood out to me as something awesome. 

On my local country music station, there's a segment every morning called "Tell Me Something Good" during which the DJs talk about good things happening in the news. That segment inspired this month's theme. One of the options we gave authors was a Q&A talking about good things. Jenna chose that option and is here to tell us something good today. 

Jenna McCarthy is a speaker and the author of several funny books for kids and adults, including the "Maggie Malone" series and I've Still Got It....I Just Can't Remember Where I Put It. Visit her at her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

Thanks to Penguin Random House, we have FIVE copies of Pretty Much Screwed for some lucky US readers!

Something good that happened to me recently:
I finished my second novel! After penning a half dozen nonfiction books, a middle grade fiction series and two separate children’s book series, I finally wrote the novel I’d been threatening to write forever (Pretty Much Screwed). Once it was completed, I had that feeling Elizabeth Gilbert talks about in her brilliant TED talk: Could I do it again? Would it be as good? After Pretty Much Screwed, my editor even said, “You set the bar really high with this one; the next one better kick ass.” I was daunted to say the least, but I decided to approach the follow-up book the same way I’ve approached all of my books: One page at a time. And as soon as I committed to that, it happened almost effortlessly. And I love it so much—maybe even more than the first one. I’m no longer daunted by number three; I just need to sit down and let the words come.

Something good that happened to someone I know:
A very dear friend recently suffered a life-threatening brain aneurism. (It gets better, I promise.) Paul was in a coma and his family and friends were told he had a less than four percent chance of ever waking, and that if he did, he would likely have little or no brain function. His mother flew in from France to say goodbye. While she was sitting vigil, he woke up. At first this was a bittersweet victory, as Paul is a sailor and an adventurer and one of the most active, vibrant people I‘ve ever met. He’d surely rather pass away peacefully than live out his days in what’s considered a “permanent vegetative state”. But Paul was and is determined. He endured hours of daily grueling physical therapy and soon was beginning to walk and talk again. He still has a long road ahead, but his commitment humbles and inspires me, and reminds me every day how precious and fragile life is.

Something good I witnessed:
A very shy, sweet girl (I’ll call her Zoe) in my 12 year old daughter’s class was being bullied mercilessly by the school’s notoriously evil “Queen Bee.” Without prompting or encouragement, my daughter stepped in and stood up to the bully, and then she took Zoe under her wing. When I asked her if she was worried that Queen Bee would aim her venom at her, my daughter said, “Oh, she knows better than to mess with ME.” (She also remarked of this girl’s undeniable attractiveness, “She might be beautiful on the outside, but she’s not beautiful on the inside, where it counts.”) To know that I am raising a brave, confident, emotionally intelligent daughter in this crazy world is hands down my greatest accomplishment in life.

Something good I heard on the news:
Recently I read a news story about a homeless man who found a stranger’s wallet with $350 in it on a park bench. He tracked down and returned it to the owner, who turned out to be a single mom battling brain cancer. When asked if he’d considered keeping the money, he replied, “Somebody might not have known, but I would have.” If that doesn’t restore your faith in humanity, I don’t know what will.

Something good someone did for me:
My husband built me my very own “she shed.” He worked on it day and night for weeks, and it is 140 square feet of pure heaven. I got to design and decorate it, and it’s all mine and it has a door that locks and everything. It’s been finished for less than a week, and the only downside I’ve found is that I’m routinely waking up long before the neighborhood chickens because I’m so excited to get out there and get to work!

Something good I did for someone else:
I paid for a stranger’s groceries. She was in front of me in the checkout line and was struggling to wrangle three small children while she unloaded her cart. When the cashier rang her up, she realized she’d left her wallet in a different bag. She was about to leave empty handed, but I couldn’t let her. I offered to pay her bill and told her she could mail me a check. She actually replied, “But how do you know I’ll do it?” I admitted that I didn’t, but I told her that I believed that she would, and that if she flaked on me it wouldn’t be the end of the world. I got a check for the full amount in the mail two days later, along with a $25 gift card. I think that if you routinely believe that people are good, more often than not they’ll prove you right.

Thanks to Jenna for the rays of sunshine and Penguin Random House for sharing her book with our readers.

~Introduction by Melissa Amster


How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

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US only. Giveaway ends July 21st at midnight EST.

#SRC2015: Leanna Lehman has our vote!

Exciting news! BookSparks just announced that Leanna Lehman, author of Vote for Remi, is the surprise guest for #SRC2015! 
Sign up to participate in her tour and you could get a free copy of Vote for Remi to review. There's also a wonderful interview with Leanna over at the BookSparks blog.

Leanna is here today to tell us her inspiration for Vote for Remi and how the book came together.

Visit Leanna at her website, Facebook, and Twitter.

Vote for Remi: The Story behind the Story

Everywhere I go, I run into people curious about what inspired me to write Vote for Remi, my debut novel, schedule for released this spring. People are genuinely intrigued by the idea of Remi, a modest high school teacher who lands on the ballot for President, compliments of her classroom of underachieving misfit students. If that isn’t unlikely enough, Remi’s campaign is powered almost entirely by social media.

The idea for Vote for Remi was a culmination of three vastly different, but converging events: the rapidly degenerating political climate, my work with at-risk teenagers at an alternative high school, and the ever-increasing power of social media. All of which, created fertile ground for Remi’s story to take root.

The first few pages reveal the spark point for the story, as well as the inspiration behind it. In the first chapter, Remi recounts an interaction she had with a journalist. That interaction, while seemingly innocuous, was based my own brief interview with a local columnist regarding the negative political ads that were dominating the airwaves leading up to the presidential election. After our short discourse, I carried on a furious inner dialog that lasted for hours–days even. So enraged at the dishonorable and cutthroat practices that politicians were using, I vowed not to vote for a candidate that participated in negative campaigning. I was ready to vote for anyone that was not a politician and didn’t use cheap tabloid tactics to further contaminate the democratic process.

Shortly thereafter, I began working with at-risk teenagers. One day I found myself in the classroom of a particularly gifted teacher. Like most days, she was striving to impart the standards set forth by the state in the area of American Government. Using digital white board technology, the Internet, and highly unorthodox teaching methods, she was able to actively engage with this is nearly unreachable group of kids. This particular teacher was working on her graduate degree in Political Science, raising three children alone, and teaching the toughest kids in the community. She was a force to be reckoned with. There I was, in an average moment, on an average day, struck with the thought that I would rather see her in the White House than anyone who was currently vying for that position or presently inhabiting it.

At the time, the concept for the book was in its infancy and still forming in my mind. I watched students come to our school and undergo a gradual, yet radical transformation. Not only did the kids respond to this unconventional teacher and others like her, they began to thrive. We were able to replace the rejection from both peers and teachers that they had experienced in a traditional high school setting with compassion and acceptance. We celebrated their diversity, helping them to discovered common ground. There were no more misfits or outcast, only parts of whole that stood together, learned together, and grew together. As a school, we also heartily embraced technology allowing the kids to take it as far as they could. The results were astounding. They flourished in everything from art to computer technology, but mostly within themselves. Many of our students were the first in their families to graduate high school. Between my loathing of the current political climate and witnessing these students voraciously embraced the Internet and social media under the tutelage of wildly unconventional teachers, precepts for Vote for Remi clicked into place.

Writing this book has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life. It was not my intent to write an overtly political novel, rather allow my readers to explore the possibilities of change in America while reading a story about a teacher and her students as they take an amazing journey together. Having gotten into more than a few scrapes taking up for the underdog in my lifetime, I recently realized that Vote for Remi is a literary expression of that part of me. Remi and her kids represent the dark horses, the outliers, and the long-shots. If I have learned anything from writing Vote for Remi, it’s that sometimes you just have to take a chance on the impossible.

Thanks to Leanna for visiting with us today!

Book Review: Ashes of Life

By Jami Deise

While other types of fiction are primarily concerned with plot, women’s fiction concentrates more on relationships. Romantic relationships, of course, but the friendships between women are just as important, and so are the connections between parent and child. One could make a case that fairy tales represent one of the oldest forms of women’s fiction. These stories, handed down verbally for generations until the Grimm Brothers and then Disney finally wrote them down and revised them for general audiences, not only featured thwarted love and other obstacles, but created that mainstay of fiction villains: the wicked stepmother (sometimes referred to as “The Stepmonster” in more contemporary works).

To this storied tradition, authors Erica Lucke Dean & Laura M. Kolar have added their salvo. Ashes of Life is told in alternating points of view from stepmother Alex and teenage stepdaughter Maddie. The twist? We meet Alex and Maddie at the funeral of Maddie’s parents. Why were David and Sarah in the car together on that icy road? At first, it seems Alex is left with only questions about the car accident as well as her pregnancy that prompted David and Alex’s just-three-months-old marriage. But the stress causes Alex to miscarry, and David’s lawyer informs her that David named her Maddie’s guardian. With Maddie’s aunt and grandmother both alcoholics, there’s no suitable family member left. Alex is forced to take the girl or leave her to foster care. Despite the animosity between her and Maddie, Alex can’t turn her over to the system. But she soon has reason to regret her compassion.

Sixteen-year-old Maddie is a mess. A self-described “cutter who doesn’t cut,” she goes out of her way looking for opportunities to screw up. There’s the drinking, getting high, cutting class, and hanging out with bad boys. And every chance she gets, she reminds Alex that her parents were together when they died. In fact, they had fallen back in love and were planning on reconciling.

And Alex believes her. Her grief over her miscarriage and David’s death, combined with this new horrific piece of news, sends Alex into her own downward spiral. Avoiding work and clean clothes, Alex can’t avoid Maddie, as the school is constantly calling her with the news of Maddie’s latest scrapes. Will Alex be able to rescue Maddie, or will she decide the troubled teen is too much?

With such a heavy premise, the authors tread lightly over the subject matter, and the voice that emerges is more commonly found in Young Adult than women’s fiction. This works well for Maddie, but makes Alex seem younger than she is. With this tone, the ending is predictable, but that doesn’t lessen the enjoyment of the book. Both women are highly sympathetic, even when Maddie is at her brattiest. There are also times when Alex seems deliberately cruel to Maddie, but the writers are always able to convey the complex emotions behind Alex’s actions, and she remains likeable even during these interactions.

Ashes of Life is a quick and easy read, a perfect beach book for those who prefer soap-opera type plots with snark and sarcasm. The voice is highly engaging, and the twists come one after another. And I found it very revealing that in the acknowledgements, (I always read them. Don’t you?) author Dean thanked her stepdaughter Mady. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, and sometimes we’re left guessing which is which.

Thanks to Red Adept Publishing for the book in exchange for an honest review.

Check out the other blogs participating in the blog tour.

Enter to win a $5 gift card or swag from Red Adept Publishing (as part of their tour):

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Worldwide. Giveaway ends July 26th.

More by Erica Lucke Dean and Laura Kolar:

Taylor Jenkins Reid channels her inner dog...plus a book giveaway

Today we welcome back Taylor Jenkins Reid. Her latest novel, Maybe In Another Life, just came out last week! In addition to writing books, Taylor has written essays, which have appeared in numerous media outlets, including The Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post, Pop Sugar and Writer's Digest. Her debut novel, Forever, Interrupted , has been optioned with Dakota Johnson to star. She also co-wrote a web series for Hulu called Resident Advisors, which was produced by Elizabeth Banks. Taylor lives in Los Angeles with her husband and dog, Rabbit.

Visit Taylor at her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Taylor is here today to share a heartwarming story with us. Thanks to Atria Books, we have one signed copy of Maybe in Another Life for a lucky reader in the US or Canada!


What Would Owl Do?

I went to Chipotle yesterday and ordered a burrito. When they rung me up at the register, my lunch was $1.95 less than it should have been. They forgot to charge me for the guacamole.

I had a choice: stay silent and take the free guacamole, or be honest and pay the $1.95.

So I did what I always do when I am faced with a moral dilemma. I asked myself, “What would Owl do?”

*****

Owl was a brown and white pit bull mix. She was barrel chested and jowly, with floppy ears and tiny, kind eyes. She was already ten when my husband and I adopted her.

Neither of us were intending to adopt a pit bull, but we became interested in the breed when we found a cute, little white pit online. We scheduled a time for his foster to bring him over to meet us. But when this little white pit showed up, he wasn’t alone. He had a friend.

She was old and had been through a lot. She had a split ear and a snaggletooth, the result of a tumor that had recently been removed from her face. Her tail and belly were missing fur from having spent so many days and nights lying on concrete. But she walked right over to us, turned on her back, and asked for a belly rub. When we gave her one, she licked our faces.

We adopted them both. We named the little one Rabbit since he was white with big ears, and we named the older one Owl, since she was brown and wise.

The more we learned about Owl, the more impressed we were with her endless capacity for love. If you had a face, she wanted to lick it. If you had hands, she wanted you to rub her belly. Owl wasn’t discerning. She just wanted to love you. No matter who you were.

Over time, Owl grew sicker and sicker. She was in and out of the vet, sometimes on a weekly basis. She had moles that needed to be removed, skin allergies that wouldn’t go away, mange problems, arthritis issues, and other chronic ailments. You’d think, because she was always going to vet, she’d hate the car. Or she’d hate the vet’s office. But she didn’t. She was happy to be wherever she was. The vet techs started calling her “Grandma” because she had such a nurturing old soul. And everyone at the vet cheered when they got to see Grandma.

I never knew how she did it -- how she could be tough enough to withstand what humans had done to her in the past without becoming wary of people or holding it against us, how she was full of unlimited generosity and affection despite the physical pain she lived with. But that’s just how she was. She took whatever the world threw at her and gave only love to the world.

It’s been almost two years since we lost her and I still find myself tearing up when I think about how hard it was to say goodbye. But instead of dwelling on the loss, I try to focus on who she was. I reflect on how much she taught me about resilience and kindness. And when I come across a situation where I don’t know what to do, no matter how big or how small, I ask myself, “What would Owl do?”

*****

I looked up at the cashier yesterday and I let her know I had guacamole. It was the honest thing to do, and more importantly, it felt like the thing that Owl would have done.

As I walked home, I found I had a hint of a spring in my step. I was proud of myself. Not necessarily for copping to the guacamole, but for being just a little bit more like Owl that day.

She may have been a dog. And she may be gone. But she is, always and forever, my hero.

Thanks to Taylor for sharing Owl with us and to Atria for sharing Taylor's book with our readers.

How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.

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US/Canada only. Giveaway ends July 20th at midnight EST.

Spotlight and Giveaway: The Santangelos

A vicious hit. A vengeful enemy. A drug addled Colombian club owner. A sex crazed Italian family. And the ever powerful Lucky Santangelo has to deal with them all, while Max—her teenage daughter is becoming The “It” girl in Europe’s modeling world. And her Kennedyesque son, Bobby, is being set up for a murder he didn’t commit. But Lucky can deal. Always strong and unpredictable with her husband, Lennie, by her side she lives up to the family motto—Never fuck with a Santangelo.

Lucky rules. The Santangelos always come out on top. An epic family saga filled with love, lust, revenge and passion.

Jackie Collins is one of the world’s top-selling novelists. With over 500 million copies of her books sold in more than 40 countries and 30 New York Times bestsellers to her credit, she is known for giving her readers an unrivaled insider’s knowledge of Hollywood and the glamorous lives (and loves) of the rich, famous, and infamous!

Visit Jackie at her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Thanks to Get Red PR, we have one copy to give away to someone in the US or Canada!


How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.


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US/Canada only. Giveaway ends July 19th at midnight EST.