Top 14 Of 2014



This doesn't need much of an introduction right? Let's get started !






Zodiac by Romina Russell takes the cake debuting at number 1 !
2. Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
3. Night Film by Marisha Pessl
4. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness





Apart of my favorite re-telling series, Cress fought strong for it's number 5 spot.
6. Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover
7. Winger by Andrew Smith
8. Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
9. Crash and Burn by Michael Hassan




Placing twice on my list, Patrick Ness holds it down for spot number 10 with More Than This.
11. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
12. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
13. You Turn by Marion Croslydon
14. Breathing Black by Piper Payne

I actually just realized that More Than This should not be at number 10 lmao. However, it's late and I'm too damn lazy to change it . . .  soooo, just know that it should've been in the 5-9 category lol. 

So there you have it guys, leave a comment down below or link me to your favorite reads of 2014!



Stacking The Shelves (5)




Stacking The Shelves is an anytime meme hosted by Tynga Reviews. It allows you to showcase the books you've recently added to your book shelves, whether they're physical or digital.

I received an Amazon Fire HD7 for christmas, and decided to use one of my gift cards to load my new baby up with some books. Santa was right on time, because when I went on Amazon yesterday, the deals were hot and I couldn't resist! Here's what I snatched up:


* I'll include the prices of the books just in case you guys want to catch some of these deals *












My Life Next Door has been on my TBR for soooo long. I finally said, " You know what, I'm going to buy you today " and for $5.70, why not?!

I guess this story follows a girl named Samantha who falls in love with I believe her next door neighbor Jase. Her family is strict and boring, while Jase's family is fun and inviting. So, because of this, she hides her relationship with her neighbor boo from her family, and that's pretty much all I know . . .
















A haul wouldn't be a haul if I didn't throw a free book in it right? So, right when I received my tablet, and started playing around with it a bit, I of course stumbled across some free books. The cover was really intriguing, and that blurb really pulled me in. Too bad that at just 23%, this book is not living up to my expectations . . .  damn you book.

From where I am in the story, all I know is it's about a girl named Peregrine Stork, who created a imaginary world through her drawings. Then all of a sudden she's living in this world that she created. Sounds promising I know, but I am only in the beginning, hopefully things get better from here. * Fingers Crossed *. 


















I follow Pierce on instagram and he is such a cutie. Heyyy Pierce! Anywho, Red Rising is on Amazon for $1.99! I've always been on the defense about it, because it's not entirely a read I would go for, but after seeing some great reviews and a slew of raves on goodreads and IG, I finally decided to get it.

I'm not quite sure what this is even about other than the fact that it takes place on Mars and the main character is trying to uncover some secrets about the planet . . . idk . . . I didn't read the synopsis and maybe I should have lmao. 















There are 4 reasons why I finally picked up this book.

1. It's been on my TBR for quite some time.
2. I read Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover and LOVED it, so now I'm inspired to read more of her books.
3. It has a 4.43 rating on Goodreads, which means this book is pretty much the shit.
4. It was only $1.99 on Amazon.


So this story is about a 22 year old college student named Sydney. She get's cheated on by her boyfriend, (cheating makes for a great story so I'm excited lol) and is left to pick up the pieces. In comes her neighbor Ridge with his swoony guitar music, and I'm sure things happen. And by things, I mean Thangs.













The same reasons I mentioned above go for this book as well. When I seen it was going for 99 cents, I snatched it up so fast. * Update * The book is no longer 99 cents, the price is now $2.99.  That's still a great price!


Just like Maybe Someday, this book also has a 4.43 rating on Goodreads, which makes me so excited to dive in. It follows a 17 year old girl named Sky who meets this boy who doesn't have a great reputation. Shit hits the fan (I'm guessing, I mean we are talking about Colleen Hoover here) and I'm assuming she finds out that he's not the guy he portrayed himself to be. That's pretty much all I received from the synopsis, especially since it was kinda vague, but oh em gee I am so ready to read this! 











Out of all the books in this haul, this one cost the most . . . .  

Wait, I just went to Amazon to remember how much I paid, I know it was $9.99, and guess what price it is now . . .  $1.99! What the hell Amazon !! lmao. 

I have no clue what the hell this book is even about. I literally just read the synopsis and I'm thinking, " Okay, a girl likes a boy. He and his brothers are known as the Raven Boys. They're rich, and attend a private school. "

I can work with this lol. 

Are the boys going to turn into raven's at night or something? What the hell is this thing about the soon-to-be-dead, and Blue causing her true love to die. I need answers, which is why this might be my next read!















I stumbled across this book on Goodreads a couple months before I started blogging and I always said I would pick it up. So when I finally remembered to do so, and seen that it was only $3.99, I one-clicked it so fast like the damn thing was about to disappear lol. 

This story is about a first date that takes place in New York City, that soon turns into a long-distance relationship between Laura an American, and Lee a Korean from another country. I've heard nothing but good things about this book, and I have a strong feeling that I'm going to love it!
















This cover is seriously making me cringe lol.

I know I've said this quite a few times already, but I'm really, really, really, really, really excited to read this book. My favorite books are ones that include some type of "media " in it. For examples, text messages, pictures, emails, social media, (fictional or not) notes, etc. Now Find Me I'm Yours takes this a step further by including " Clickable Content ". I heard there are instagram photos you can view, real websites you can visit, all sorts of things! This reminds of Night Film by Marisha Pessl, which is one of my all time favorite books. The content wasn't clickable, but there were notes, pictures and websites and such included throughout the story. Marisha Pessl also has an app you can use alongside the book to enhance your reading experience. I loved it! 

I don't know what this book is about, and honestly I don't care, it has the bones to be great with this amazing concept, let's just hope it delivers on the execution. 

You can order this book through the website or on amazon for $2.99.

( There's going to be a new genre called Click-Lit . . . so I've heard. I couldn't find too much information on it though )

So that's it you guys! I don't think I'll be stacking these shelves of mine anytime soon . . . okay I'm lying, but I'm going to try to read most of the books on TBR before I haul a serious amount of new books. What have you guys recently hauled? Comment down below and link me to your posts !


Top Ten Tuesday (2)


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke And The Bookish. 
This week's topic is:

Top Ten Books You Wouldn't Mind Santa Bringing You This Year.









I wish santa could up this release date from April to now, but since that's impossible, I have to wait. * Cringes * When I read the synopsis and skimmed some of the reviews on goodreads, I knew I had to have this book. A 16 year old boy who's not only gay, but OPENLY gay ?! 

Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie Santa !


















I usually don't like reading books about illnesses because, well, they make me incredibly sad. But, this cover is nothing that I can pass up. I enjoyed The Fault in Our Stars, and not surprisingly, this book is being compared to it, so you know what . . . I'll be getting my hands on this soon.

















Santa might not approve of this book, but hey santa, yea you . . . mind your damn business! One thing I'm a sucker for is a book that has a whole lot of crazy going on, and that's exactly what Andrew is offering. Apparently this guy's crazy sister dies and now she's haunting him and his family. That was pretty much all I needed to hear.

















Ready Player One is one of my favorite novels of this year. Ernest had geeks all around the world (including me) squealing with delight with all his video game references, and his incredibly original world. In Armada we're being introduced to another game, but this time, it's reality. Sounds good to me!



















This was no surprise right lol? I've mentioned this book about 3 times in the past two weeks, so I'll just keep it moving to the next book.



















If santa put this book under my tree I would literally scream. I've been wanting this book for soooo long! Every time I buy physical books, I always forget to pick this up, which is weird because I really, really, really want this book. I've always been intrigued by novels that have stories within stories . . . if that makes any sense. House of Leaves has some sort of weird formatting that consists of you flipping to certain parts of the book, margins, foot notes, that kind of thing. I love when books put you to work lol!















Here's another book I've been wanting for quite some time. I really enjoy graphic novels, and books that have images with little to no words, and Chopsticks is an example of that. Told in just pictures, Chopsticks is said to be both a captivating yet heartbreaking love story. I must have this soon!














Did you guys know she named this book after my blog? Pretty cool right? lol 

After I read Ugly Love this year, which is another favorite of mine, I told myself that I would read anything this woman has her name on. She's one of the queens of New Adult, making extremely heartbreaking stories, and I love her work. Well, I can't say I love all her work because I DNF'd Slammed around 30 or so pages lol. But Ugly Love redeemed that. I really love how her cover art always ties into the story itself, and after stumbling across this on goodreads last month, and after being totally drawn to the synopsis, I want this book . . . now!








I've been wanting to read Brandon Sanderson because he's a well respected author in the fantasy world, however, his books are so damn intimidating! I'm not ready for high fantasy just yet, so I figured I'll ease myself into his works starting with this. I love that the concept reminds me of the show Chalk Zone, which I used to watch everyday after school, so I'm so ready to read this. Plus the book has illustrations!








HP (The Creature Vault) | Jody Reverson

The physical copy of this book is so beautiful. I mean, it's Harry Potter. I buy everything that has my ex-husband's name on it lmao. It has images of all the creatures that were featured in the books/movies, as well as a profile on each creature. I need this santa!

Stacking The Shelves (4)




Stacking The Shelves is an anytime meme hosted by Tynga Reviews. It allows you to showcase the books you've recently added to your book shelves, whether they're physical or digital. 


I didn't go too crazy this time around, being that I have books from this haul that I haven't even touched yet, so I'm hauling the 6 books that recently grabbed my attention.









Shiver | Maggie Stiefvater

I heard alot of good things about this author, but was always a little apprehensive about reading her books. But, now I'm in a fantasy/paranormal/supernatural kick, and I wanted to find something that would be a perfect read for the winter. I seen the cover, and I'm getting a very wintery-twilighty feel  so I decided to picked it up lol. I've also been eyeing her Raven-Cycle series for awhile but thought I'll use this to ease into her writing.

After reading the synopsis I'm definitely getting a twilight vibe, and you know what I'm super excited for this. I loved twilight, and even though I liked Edward more than Jacob, I'm in the mood to read about some cute wolves who turn into even cuter humans. If you don't know what this is about, it follows a girl named Grace who has been watching the wolves that live (I guess) in the woods behind her house. She connected with a wolf, the particular wolf with yellow eyes, and when she meets a boy with the same familiarity, she believes it's him. (Well of course it is!) Apparently this wolf-boy is a human in the summer, but turns back to his animal form in the winter, and he's trying to stop that from happening . . . I think. Sounds promising to me! I'm terrible at rephrasing the synopsis of a book lmao. 








Linger | Maggie Stiefvater

Because I believe I'm truly going to enjoy Shiver, I decided to pick up it's sequel. I have no clue as to what this one is about, (I'm not going to spoil myself by reading the synopsis lol) so I guess we're figuring it out after I finally dive into book one.


If you have read this trilogy or series, let me know what you think! I'm eager to hear some opinions on these books. 









Us | David Nicholls

I'm in a serious mood to read some Adult contemporaries. I've read so much YA and NA this year, and I really want to get back into the world of ADULTS lol. In my second stacking the shelves haul, I actually picked up a TON of Adult books, so looks like 2015 is going to be a great start. 

Anywho, Us I believe is about a husband who is trying to save his marriage. His wife wants to " rediscover herself " but Douglas (the husband) believed they would be going through this moment together. When he finds out she wants to leave too, he plans one last family trip in hopes of bringing them together. I'm rooting for you Douglas, you better save your marriage dammit !










The 100 | Kass Morgan

I've seen this book around sooooo much, especially since everyone seems to love the TV show, and that was pretty much my motivation to pick it up. I'm almost finished reading Zodiac, and I'm so spoiled with the amazing world of space or galactic environment or whatever you want to call it lol, to the point I want to read more books with this concept. I've already read that The 100 is in no comparison to Zodiac, so atleast I know what I'm getting myself into, but I wanted to start somewhere, especially since I'll be tuning into the show soon. 

To sum this up as best as I can, The 100 is about humans who live in city-live spaceships. The abandoned planet Earth was once their homeland, now the government (Of course) want to make it habitable again. So, they send some delinquents to earth to recolonize the planet, and I'm almost 1000% sure, all hell is going to break loose. I just know it. 










Everything I Never Told You | Celeste NG

I've had this book on my TBR for so long. I'm a sucker for stories about families, who after a traumatic experience, start to unravel along with their darkest secrets . . . yup, I'm excited for this book. This may even be my next read after Zodiac, I'm not sure just yet.

This story is about a girl named Lydia, who is found dead in a local lake. Her family, I'm assuming were a tight-knit group, crumble into a chaotic mess after her sudden death. This is definitely right up my alley. 







Snow Like Ashes | Sara Raasch

Everybody and their mama loves this book! I actually decided to pick this up after I left Noelia's blog just yesterday. She did a really great review on it, so I decided I wanted to love this book just like everyone else lol. As I mentioned earlier, I'm in a serious mood for some fantasy, especially a story that takes place in the winter, so I figured this would be the perfect time to start.

I'm not exactly sure what this is about, other than there's a war between . . . seasons . . . ?

I know for sure it's about a girl who sets off to retrieve some type of magic that has been stolen from her Kingdom. Obviously things don't go as planned, and she gets caught up in a bunch of shit . . . I'm excited lmao. 




If you guys have read any of these books, be sure to comment below and tell me your thoughts! 

Waiting on Wednesday (2)



Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases we're most excited for. I kept it short and sweet with just 4 titles this time around.






Now this is what I'm truly waiting on! The Lunar Chronicles is one of the most entertaining series, and I can not wait to read from the POV of Queen Levana. This should hold me over until the late 2015 release of Winter.





There's so much hype around this book, so it better be as good as it looks. I'll be lying if I said I wasn't mentally counting down till it's release. 





This book magically appeared on my doorstep just yesterday, and you know what, I'm definitely not complaining! After reading the synopsis, I am so excited to start this deliciously scandalous novel. 





Look at this cover! I love fairytale re-tellings and I especially love the classic tale of Arabian Nights. I stumbled across this one day, and after reading the synopsis, I am most definitely getting my hands on this!


So there you have it guys, all of the upcoming titles I most excited for. Well, not all but you get the point lol. What titles are you looking forward to reading next year?















Tamales by Alice Guadalupe Tapp | First Taste




Tamales (Fast And Delicious Mexican Meals) | Alice Guadalupe Tapp
Pages: 131
Genre(s): Cookbook
Published: January 1st 2014 | Ten Speed Press
Format: Hardcover
Source: Random House 



Mexican Night


Everybody knows that I loveeeeee to eat. We're always throwing down in my house, and we especially like to do what we call " Theme Nights ", where we'll cook food according to whatever theme is chosen. Mexican night has been something we've been doing for years, and for some apparent reason, Tamales always seem to weasel it's way on the menu. So it made total sense to try out and review some of the recipes from this cookbook I received from Crown Publishing (Random House Imprint). 



Favorite Recipes


So far, I've only been able to try two of the many recipes in this book. I received this a little before the holidays, so I've pretty much been stuffing myself with holiday inspired food ya know. Oh and with Christmas right around the corner, I probably won't make more of the dishes until after the new year.

Okay don't kill me. I didn't take pictures of the dishes I made -_- . Don't worry, next time I'll be better prepared lol. Anywho, the first recipe is my personal favorite. My mother is a big fan or tamales, which is why they're a re-occurring dish in our home. I however, am not huge fan of the corn husks that most tamales are made with, so I really enjoyed the sirloin beef tamales. I just whipped it up quickly, and poured them over a bed of polenta. Mmm, mmm, tasty. 




Sirloin Beef Tamales





1 Pound Beef Sirloin
3 Tablespoon Olive Oil
Pinch of Salt
Pinch of Pepper
1 Small to medium onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups plus 6 tablespoons
Pasilla Chile Sauce 
Or- 1 (28 ounce) can Las Palmas Red Chile Sauce 
3 cups Fresh Masa 

Cut the sirloin into 1-inch pieces. Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the sirloin, salt, and pepper, and saute until barely brown, or approximately 5 minutes, then add the onion garlic and cook 5 minutes more, until the onion is translucent. Add 2 cups of the red chile sauce and cook, stirring, for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. 

Add the remaining 6 tablespoons chile sauce to the masa and mix thoroughly until well incorporated. Assemble the tamales (see pages 5-6), using 1/4 cup masa and 1/4 cup filling for each tamale. Transfer to a steamer and steam for 50 minutes. 

Makes 12 Tamales








Here's a recipe for a easy to make salsa. If you're a sauce and condiment lover like myself, you'll use this quite alot in your mexican or-not-so-mexican dishes. 



Super Easy Salsa


1 (11.5-ounce) can V8 juice, chilled
1/2 minced fresh jalapeno, seeded if desired
1/4 cup minced or chopped cilantro
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon fresh lime or lemon or vinegar
Salt, as needed


Mix everything together and taste, adding salt a pinch at a time if needed. Serve with chips or use as a sauce. Refrigerate between uses.


This next recipe is sooo freaking good! We've made it three times already, and plan to make them again for new years!




Banana Nutella Tamales


1/4 Cup unsalted butter
1/4 Cup sugar
2 Teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 Large bananas, cut into 1/2 inch slices
3 cups Sweet Masa
1 (13-ounce) Jar Nutella


Melt the butter in a large saucepan, then add the sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Add the bananas and cook, stirring for about 3 minutes, until the bananas are glazed. Set aside to cool.

Assemble the tamales, using 1/4 cup masa, 1/3 cup bananas, and 1 generous tablespoon of Nutella for each tamale. Don't spread the Nutella over the bananas, just scoop it on top. Transfer to a steamer and steam for 50 minutes. 





I'm far from a Husk-Wrapping pro, but thanks to these illustrations I'm well on my way!



Books, Blogs, & Reality by Ryan Ringbloom | Book Blitz + Review








Books, Blogs, & Reality | Ryan Ringbloom 
Pages: 202
Genre(s): New Adult, Contemporary, Chick Lit
Published: October 24th 2014 
Format: E-Copy
Source: IndieSage 
















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?





A Book About . . . Book Bloggers?



That's right, you heard me correctly, a book about book bloggers! I've been jumping up and down, squealing like a horny school girl with anticipation to share this review with you guys. Books, Blogs, and Reality is more than what it's title is presenting to us. We dive into the story of 4 young women, as they take us on a quick journey through their experiences with life, new love, current relationships, online friendships, and of course, their love for books!




Characters That Represent YOU



I can't think of a novel where I related to more than one character. Maybe one or two at the least, but definitely no more than that. One of the best things about this book was that I was able to truly connect and relate to not one, but ALL of the characters.


Brooke was a young businesswoman who found love in the workplace. We follow her story as she embarks on a fast-pace romance with someone who should be completely off limits especially at work . . . her boss. They mesh so well together, and soon we're rooting for the new couple. I can definitely relate to Brooke's situation! 3 years ago I met my bae in the Outside Lawn & Garden Center of Lowes. I was asked to train him on how to receive trucks and drive the forklifts in our department, and he hasn't left me the hell alone since. Romantic story right lol?


We dive into Rachael's story just as she's ready to add some " spice " into her sex life. She's very much into BDSM, (if you don't know what this means, think of 50 Shades of Grey. * shivers *) and wants her boyfriend Kevin to up his ante and get in on the fun. 


I will admit that Rachael definitely has my personality! She's wild, fun, and down-right crazy, but was into a whole nother world, that I dare not enter. As I read through her chapters, she really started to remind me of my close blogger friend Blessie from Mischievous Reads. Both have this fire in their personalities, and absolutely love them some smutty reads aka romance novels. 


Next we have Lizzie. She's 24 years old, married to her high school sweetheart, and is extremely unhappy. She feels her husband is being distant. They have little to no conversation, and even less intimacy, causing her to have some self-esteem issues.


 I was truly able to connect with Lizzie (not completely). We're both stay at home mothers, with boys around the same age. Reading her perspective really shined a light on what it truly means to be a stay at home mom. The constant cooking, cleaning, etc. It can definitely take a toll on your mind, body, and soul, and even though I'm not entirely going through her situation, it was good to know that I could not only sympathize, but completely understand what she was going through. 


Last but certainly not least, we have Jessica. Now, Jess was the character I have the least in common with. She was young minded as all out doors, but weren't we all at that age?!! Okay maybe not, because I know I wasn't lol, but I must say I've made some pretty dumb mistakes back then, so yeah we relate somewhat. Jessica was the youngest of all the characters, and it definitely showed. She had a huge crush on some asshole, missing out on an amazing guy who truly had her best interest at heart. 


Struggling to realize her self-worth, she continued to make stupid decisions all to appease her crush. Thank goodness she finally opens her eyes to the bs, but sadly it was a bit too late. She didn't end up with who I thought she would, which completely took me by surprise. Shout out to Ms.Ringbloom for not going the predicable route!



The Complete Package



The author brilliantly wrote a realistic story about what it truly means to be a book blogger, while balancing our regular lives and all the issues we may encounter. She displays how blogging becomes an outlet for us, and how our blogger friends become shoulders to lean on, and ears to fill with secrets. Secrets we may not even share with our close in-real-life-friends. She puts so much thought into these stories, mirroring the exact thoughts of a book blogger. For example, for the first 4 chapters, we are presented with brief bios of all the characters, very reminiscent to what our blog bios look like.



But that's not all! Throughout the story, there are actual book reviews on books, that are in correlation with the character's story. So basically, each book that was reviewed has some sort of connection to that particular chapter. Cool right? 

In conclusion I absolutely adored this book. It was so fun reading the alternating POV's of the very different characters, and their lives outside of the blogging community. It definitely showed how we all can have so much in common with one another, other than our love for books. I encourage every, and I mean every book blogger to read Books, Blogs, and Reality. It's certainly a must!








Icy Pretty Love by L.A Rose | Blog Tour + Review














Icy Pretty Love | L.A Rose
Pages: 250
Genre(s): New Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Published: November 15 2014
Format: Ebook
Source: Author












Glass-doll beauty. A shy, proper smile. Georgette Montgomery is the perfect billionaire’s fiancé. Or she would be, if she existed. A dark past. A smile that hides everything.

At nineteen, Rae Grove escapes her disaster life by pretending to be other people—specifically, whoever the man paying her that night wants her to be. Until she’s offered enough money for a one-way ticket to a better life. All she has to do is fly to Paris and pretend to be the fiancé of young business tycoon Cohen Ashworth for one month.

Within an hour of meeting Cohen, Rae knows three things about him:

 1. He hates everyone and everything.

 2. He has abundant wit and a knife-sharp tongue.

 3. He uses 2 to make everyone aware of 1.

Before long, Rae’s determined to crack open his unbreakable shell. Cohen’s determined to stay unbroken. But no one escapes unscathed when two opposite worlds collide.




3 Times A Charm


When I think about it, I've been rocking with L.A Rose since I started blogging. She's one of my favorite indie authors that produces some pretty great work. She's created both reckless and sensual scenes in Adrian Lessons, wild and unfiltered characters in James Games, and finally a full package consisting of an addictive story in Icy Pretty Love. Just a few pages in, I knew her third novel would completely over-shadow the other two. I guess the quote, " Three times a charm is a true statement. 


Well Hello Georgette!


If you were offered a hefty amount of money to pretend to be someone's fiance for a month, would you do it?

I asked myself this question quite a few times while reading. I came to the conclusion that if this was a few years ago when I was single and childless, then maybe I would've. I mean come on, Paris, a new identity, a fresh start! But then I thought well, I would miss my friends . . . but what if I didn't have any friends? Well I would miss my mom . . . but what if I didn't have any parents? Sounds like a sweet deal to me. 

This is exactly the decision 19 year old Rae Grove was propositioned to make. She was approached by an older gentlemen, with an offer she couldn't possibly refuse. Living the life as an escort, and enduring both physical and emotional pain, she was in dire need of a change. In comes the lovely Georgette Montgomery, Rae's new persona. She finally arrives in Paris, ready to meet her new " fiance " when shit kinda hits the fan.

Her fiance has no clue who Georgette Montgomery, let alone who Rae Grove is.

Uh Oh.


Meet Mr.Grumpy Pants


Cohen Ashworth is not a friendly fellow. In fact, he's down right mean. He's a hater of just about everything: people, children, ferris wheels, holidays . . . this man is the epitome of a year round grinch. So when he finds out his father has hired an escort, (of all people) to pretend to be his fiance, he's pretty upset. No scratch that, livid is more of an appropriate word. Forced to interact with a complete stranger was like asking Cohen to have a vasectomy, but overtime that brick wall of ice he's spent years building around himself, slowly begins to dissolve. Note I said slowly lol. 



Opposites Attract


Rae, er, Georgette, was a bubble of fun. She had this tell-it-like-it-is personality, that reminded me so much of myself. She was so annoying, (in a good way) to the point it was absolutely hilarious, and had such a problem shutting her damn mouth. Biting her tongue wasn't her best forte at all, but she needed these qualities to deal with the callous behavior of her fiance. 

Introverted Cohen wasn't a big fan of conversation. He was extremely reserved, usually heavily into his work, and when out & about in public, was rude and completely thoughtless to others. But like my mother always says, Georgette was " Time enough for that ass " and during " Niceness Lessons " she created for him, she was able to little by little, get him to not only open up more, but treat people with much more respect than he had in the past. 

Speaking of pasts . . .  if there was one thing they had in common, it was this. Georgette with her risky profession and the abuse that came with it, and Cohen with his drug abuse issue that could possibly ruin his image as well as profession. Both were robbed of their childhoods, causing them to make poor decisions, but while Georgette learned to right her wrongs and to become a better person, Cohen on the other hand, was obviously still struggling.

One of the things I enjoyed the most, was that for half of the book, they didn't get along. There was constant bickering and banter, making their dialogue such a pleasure to read. Eventually, Cohen begins to come out of his shell, (only a little) giving us a peek of the man hidden behind that mask, and boy I understood why Rae, sorry Georgette fell in love, well strong like.



Cliche Free Is The Way 2b


I've read quite a few New Adult novels this year. Most of them pretty much had the same plot, same twists, and same flat, one-dimensional characters, but honestly Icy Pretty Love was a different reading experience for me. The writing and pacing were very smooth. Nothing happened to quickly, which made every scene fall into place perfectly. Oh and no insta-love! It took them so long, (not too long though) to finally face that fact that they indeed liked each other. If I had to compare this to any other book, it would most likely be Anna & The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Although these two stories have different plots, they're romance/contemporaries centered in Paris. If I had to chose what book I thought was best, Icy Pretty Love would win my vote hands down. IPL is more of a mature read, with characters that have depth and meaning. The writing delivers as a good contemporary should, with amusing scenes that are sure to make you smile, or crack up laughing as I did. The ending is so realistic it was almost shocking. People don't change overnight, and I appreciated the fact that Rose took this into consideration. 

If you're looking for a great New Adult read, I will definitely recommend this. This time around the story isn't as raunchy as her other two novels, and I appreciated that. We're given a cute, sophisticated story, (compared to her other works) with not-so-sophisticated characters. I loved it.