Carries Book Reviews

A Thousand Yesteryears by Mae Clair
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After finding out that her aunt had passed away from cancer, Eve Parrish finds that she has inherited the family home and business back in Point Pleasant. Eve’s mother had packed up her daughter and left the town behind years ago after a bridge collapse that claimed Eve’s father’s life along with the life of her best friend Maggie.

When Eve arrives in Point Pleasant she finds some things have changed about the town but others are still the same from her childhood. Rumors of sightings of a supernatural creature called the Mothman still plague the town and Eve soon finds that her aunt may have had secrets hidden after finding that her home ha been broken into. Soon Eve finds herself caught up in the mystery of what happened that tragic night the bridge had collapsed.

A Thousand Yesteryears is one of those books that had a great mix of several different elements to it. There’s the mystery/thriller aspect but with a mix of supernatural and paranormal thrown into the mix but you also have a bit of a romantic suspense when Eve meets up with her childhood crush who helps her solve the mystery.

The characters are all likable in the story. A great little small town vibe where everyone knows everyone else. I couldn’t help but like Eve as a main character and quickly found myself rooting for her to figure out just what had happened. She also grows a bit in the story as she learns that people are not always what they were rumored to be and becomes friends with someone from her childhood.

Overall, best described as a supernatural mystery/thriller and one that I really enjoyed, would definitely recommend.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Safe With You
Sophie Lira
Published by: Swoon Romance
Publication date: April 26th 2016
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Olivia Simon is starting over in the Big Easy. Her new job as a yoga instructor means she gets to pursue her passion, while giving her the motivation she needs to get back on track. But she’s scared. Really scared. Scared her abusive ex-boyfriend will find her. Scared of all things that go bump in the night… and day. She knows her ex will have a claim on her future happiness unless she can find her own peace. Which starts with Kyle.

Kyle Avery, a former college baseball player on the brink of going pro, is also starting over. His dream since Little League was shattered when a jealous rival went too far in a pre-season game. After a few surgeries, all Kyle is left with are a few rods in his leg, a rebuilt knee, and no idea who he is without baseball. But when he trades center field for a yoga mat, he finds solace in a way he never imagined. Kyle knows there’s something about Olivia. Something he needs to move forward.

But Olivia loves to run, and it’s too soon for her to be playing house. Olivia and Kyle want to invest in each other, but the secrets they’ve kept take a dangerous turn when Olivia’s past returns with a vengeance. Devastated and helpless, Olivia wonders who she can really trust, and Kyle questions if he was ever able to keep her safe.

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EXCERPT:

“You’re killin’ me, Simon.” I lower the bat and look at the imaginary watch on my wrist. “I don’t have all day.”

She sticks her tongue out at me and pitches a floater. It comes toward me in slow motion with a million arrows begging me to launch it into next year. My mind switches off and instinct takes over. Before I can think, my left heel rises off the sandy dirt and I raise the bat back farther. I crush the ball so hard I almost expect the casing to fly off. The sound of contact reverberates and explodes like a strike of lightning splitting a tree. Olivia’s head arcs with the ball and follows it as it lands about ten feet beyond the right field fence.

“Nice throw!” The swing takes my breath away completely. I almost need to use the bat as a cane for support. A familiar smile flows across my face and the rush comes back as if it never left … the rush of playing and knowing this is what my life was meant for. The hole in my heart starts to close and the missing piece reappears as quickly as it went.

“Kyle!” She runs over to me with the same amount of wide-eyed astonishment I think is all over my face. “That was incredible! Your stance, your follow-through, everything was perfect. For someone who hasn’t played in a few years, you’re pretty awesome.” She sighs and the most beautiful smile stretches across her face.” (Kyle, Chapter Six)

Author Bio:

Sophie is represented by Julia Weber & will be publishing her first novel, SAFE WITH YOU, on 04/26/2016, by Swoon Romance

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Hope
Grier Cooper
(Indigo Ballet Series, #2)
Publication date: April 26th 2016
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

Indigo is living the life she’s always imagined at the famed New York School of Ballet. Or is she? Although she hopes she’ll be chosen for the company, her ballet teachers aren’t talking and their silence is confusing.

When Indigo is singled out for a coveted solo she feels her dreams are finally within reach, until she finds out she’s dancing with Felipe Gonzalez, the school’s smolderingly hot rising star. In the days that follow, Indigo questions everything she thought was true and finds herself making surprising choices.

After a fateful piece of paper reveals the truth, Indigo must ask herself the hardest question of all: can she take control of her own future to create the life she wants?

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Sequel to:

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EXCERPT:

Maggie plunks her bag down, grabbing the spot next to me. “Ten minutes ‘til the fun begins,” she says. She glances around furtively before adding, “Who knows what torture she’ll dish out today. But inquiring minds want to know: will she reach new levels of cattiness or will we be left sorely disappointed?” She grins wickedly as she finishes tying a ribbon on her pointe shoe.

Neither of us fares well when Alexa Damore teaches class. She’s known for her snide comments and keen ability to pick people apart. “I’ll take disappointment over

outright humiliation any day,” I counter. “But who knows. Maybe one of these days she’ll be miraculously transformed.”

Maggie arches an eyebrow. “What?” I continue. “It’s not too much to hope for–a little prayer can’t hurt. Pray with me. ” I fold my hands together and duck my head down. Maggie smacks me.I stick my tongue out at her while I finish tying my shoes. I refuse to climb on the negativity train with her. It’s never a good way to start class.

The door to the studio glides open and a sudden hush sweeps through the room, as if the oxygen has been sucked away. Alexa Damore has arrived–but she’s wearing street clothes–and she’s not alone.

Benjamin Stafford, Artistic Director of Manhattan Ballet Theater, also known as the man who holds our future in his hands, stands in the center of the room. From where I stand, the ambient light behind him illuminates the outline of his body, as if he’s a living embodiment of a god. Then again, he is a god in the world of ballet. The silence is deafening as he slowly rotates around, gazing at each of us in turn. He flashes a brilliant smile and it’s all I can barely look at him. He’s even larger in life than he is onstage with broad shoulders, chiseled features, dark, tousled hair, and blazing blue eyes. On any given day he’s something to look at, but the glowing outline thing further illustrates the glaring difference between him and everyone else in the room.

His eyes fall on me and my heart flutters in my ribcage. I immediately stand a little bit taller and suck in my gut. My breath gets shallower and tighter. I close my eyes and force myself to breath normally. Passing out in class is not the way I want to make an impression.

I may not survive this class.

Author Bio:

Grier began ballet lessons at age five and left home at fourteen to study at the School of American Ballet in New York. She has performed on three out of seven continents with companies such as San Francisco Ballet, Miami City Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet, totaling more than thirty years of experience as a dancer, teacher and performer.

Her work has been praised as “poignant and honest” with “emotional hooks that penetrate deeply.” She writes and blogs about dance in the San Francisco Bay Area and has interviewed and photographed a diverse collection dancers and performers including Clive Owen, Nicole Kidman, Glen Allen Sims and Jessica Sutta. She is the author of Build a Ballerina Body and The Daily Book of Photography.

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Perfect Sense
Amanda Cowen
(Perfect Series, #1)
Publication date: March 22nd 2016
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult

He’s gorgeous.

He’s reckless.

And he’s every woman’s dirty fantasy in the state of California.., except one… Quinn Ashby.

Recent graduate of Penn and top of her class, Quinn is whip smart, ambitious and interning as the new marketing coordinator for the Bexley Bruisers American Hockey League team. The last thing she needs is to waste her time on guys…especially one as lethal to her focus as Cash Brooks.

But once the bad boy hockey star tempts her into his world, threatening her professional future, she’s forced to decide whether to let him into her heart…or to leave him behind forever.

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EXCERPT:

I round the corner into the secluded hall leading to the washrooms, and my heart stops. Cash on the ice, sweaty and dressed in hockey equipment, was sexy, but the Cash sitting feet away, wearing an expensive modern-fit, pastel brown suit, is insanely hot. I eye the two women perched on either side of him on the red velvet chaise. To his right, a long-haired blonde with extensions rests a possessive hand on his chest. To his left, a woman with jet black hair toys with her side ponytail while running the fingers of her other hand through his wavy honey-colored hair.

His piercing blue gaze snaps to mine, and he tilts his head to the side, studying me. A cocky grin curves his full lips. I move forward, unable to breathe as his stare slides down my peplum dress, stopping once at my breasts and once at my hips. His eyes lock with mine and I fiddle with the gold-toned slider bracelet around my wrist. He

pushes up from the chaise, abandoning the two women feeling him up in the corner. I turn away, and as my palm slams against the door of the ladies room, a big, warm hand closes around my wrist.

Cash spins me around and I press back against the wall beside the door. He cages me, his palms flat on either side of my head. He leans toward me, his mouth inches from my face, so close I can the warmth of his breath tickling my cheek. He smells ridiculously good, like honey and cinnamon.

“Mittens,” he whispers, his mouth dangerously close to my lips. “I didn’t peg you as the stalking type, especially since you took off after I scored that hard-earned goal for you.”

What an arrogant bastard!

I arch an eyebrow at him. “Excuse me? Do I know you?”

His eyes flicker, and his lips curl in amusement. “Come on, Quinn. I don’t ever forget a pretty face. I’m willing to bet you don’t forget one either.”

My heart pounds as I glare into his sharp baby blues. His sexy athletic build towers over me. He makes me feel even more petite than usual. I try to ignore the rise and fall on his muscular chest, but despite myself my nipples harden.

Even though my body is betraying me, I refuse to act like every other puck bunny, falling at his feet. “You’re really full of yourself, aren’t you?” I say. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to use the ladies room.”

He chuckles, “How about you stop playing games with me and admit you came here looking for me.”

I shoot him a disgusted look. “I’m not here for you.”

Cash smiles at me with what I am guessing to be one of his most charmingly rehearsed expressions. He cocks his head to the side then bites his bottom lip like he is thinking about something. “Alright, since you want to play it that way…” He leans in close enough that I feel his stubble brush against my cheek. “Can I buy you a drink?”

An unwelcome shiver of awareness shoots up my spine. “Listen, asshole. I am Hilton Ashby’s daughter and the newest employee in the Marketing and Promotions Department for the Bruisers. So if you wouldn’t mind stepping aside so I can freshen up, I would really appreciate it.”

Cash’s dimples deepen, and a dangerous grin pulls at the corners of his lips. “Perfect, now I know where I can find you.”

I feel myself weaken for a brief second at his smile, until I remind myself this guy is nothing but trouble. Wrapping my fingers tightly around his tie, I yank him against my chest, and whisper in his ear, “Stay away from me, Brooks. I don’t do arrogant dickheads.”

Cash looks straight into my eyes, his grin still in place. He runs a callused fingertip along my collarbone. “I’m not going anywhere.” He leans down, his lips close to mine. “I promise you, this is just the beginning.”

When he steps back, I have to press my back hard against the wall to keep myself from sliding down to the floor. He runs his thumb possessively over my lips, before he turns around and walks over to his two voluptuous dates waiting for him on the chaise.

I inhale a sharp breath, before I push open the door into the ladies room. I collapse into one of the stalls unable to breathe. I can still feel where Cash’s stubble touched the side of my face and wonder how I am ever going to survive this internship.

Author Bio:

Amanda Cowen can be found eating cupcakes, singing off-key, or watching a good RomCom when she isn’t trapped on her computer writing stories and delighting her imagination. She has been writing since the ripe age of twelve about ponies and princesses in brightly colored duo-tangs with metallic pens. Thankfully, she now has a Mac with a keyboard where she can write about love, sex and relationships. She is an “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” fanatic, a hater of roller-coasters and a country music junkie. She lives in Thunder Bay, ON where the summers are short and the winters are long.

Her next Contemporary Romance/New Adult Fiction novel TAINTED (The Wyatt Series #1) will be available in Summer 2014.

Amanda would love to hear from her readers. Contact her via her website, www. amandacowen.com, become a fan on Facebook, follow her on Goodreads, or visit her blog.

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Painting Sky
Rita Branches
Publication date: April 25th 2016
Genres: New Adult, Romance

Nobody ever said life was easy…

People pleaser, Jane Skylar wants nothing more than to earn her art degree, start her life, and bask in the bliss of living with her boyfriend.

But things don’t always go as planned…

Struggling with her creative side, Jane finds herself in turmoil, often confiding in her roommate – another, more talented art student, Keith Hale. Keith just so happens to be her boyfriend’s older, brooding brother. After a devastating breakup, Jane turns to Keith for comfort. But when the lines blur between roommate and lover, Jane’s life becomes more complicated than ever before.

When Keith’s past comes back to haunt him, their lives all get turned upside down, forcing the truth to surface. Now Jane must fight for what she wants–even if it hurts everyone she loves.

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EXCERPT:

When I pulled the door open, the last person I wanted to see was sitting on a stool, sipping his morning coffee. He didn’t acknowledge me.

I poured some coffee in a random mug, since Keith was using my favorite one, and tried to reach the last package of cookies on the top shelf. I really didn’t want to use the stool in front of Keith.

What was the least humiliating decision? Trying to reach it by jumping on the counter or getting the stupid stool? I almost decided on just eating something at school when a throat being cleared sounded just behind me. I knew that, if I turned around, he would be invading my personal space. I had no intention of letting him ruin my birthday, so I stayed put with my arms crossed over my chest.

“Were you deciding between the cookies, the canned peas, or the rice? Because I

can help with either one of them, just not sure which one you get in the morning.” Keith snickered. I could smell him, and the fact that such a pleasant smell could come from such an unpleasant person puzzled me.

I had the strong urge to turn and flip him the finger. I had never done that in my life, but could now understand why people did it. Instead, I turned slowly, thinking about how to have the upper hand this time.

I was right about the personal space: I leaned back and rested my hands behind me on the counter. He was standing so close to me that I had to look up to see his eyes. For a second, I saw the indecision there, as if he knew he should step back.

I had to think of a witty response fast, but then I noticed he had shaved— that was where the amazing smell was coming from. He had a small cut on his throat.

Keith wasn’t smirking now; he was genuinely waiting for me to do something. I wished I could read his thoughts so I could do the exact opposite of what he was hoping for.

I quickly took the wish back. It was my birthday, after all, and we never did know when a wish would be granted. This was one I really didn’t want to come true. Hearing his words hurt enough without having to hear his thoughts, as well.

“Next time you shave, try standing an inch or two closer to the blade,” I whispered, leaning closer to his shoulder.

I was so pleased with my joke that I pondered going upstairs and writing it down. I smiled triumphantly at my quick response and did a little happy dance inside.

“Did you have to think on that one this whole time, or were you just checking me out?”

My smile faltered and then completely disappeared. That had been a good one. Okay, I must have thought about it a little longer than I realized. Maybe I had been kind of checking him out—not in a “you’re so hot” way, but more of a “if you could just be a statue and never speak or move, I would thank the powers that be” way.

I stuck my chin out to try to appear taller. “That was a good one and you know it.” I crossed my arms again and brushed against his chest in the process.

Author Bio:

Rita Branches is an independent YA (young adult) author who enjoys spending every free moment (when she´s not reading) writing emotional stories. Visit: http://ritabranches.wordpress.com/

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