FINN for the WINN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dirty Rowdy Thing!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am going to try to write a spoiler-free review of Dirty Rowdy Thing. Stop laughing. I said I would try. No promises.

Dirty Rowdy Thing is Harlow and Finn’s story and oh what a story it is!!! I could spend forever prattling on and on about Finn (and I will)…BUT…before I do that, I have to take a moment and talk Harlow. I love Harlow. Methinks she should be my friend. That girl has sass and she’s not afraid to use it!

One of the many things I love about Christina Lauren is that they consistently write strong female leads that you do not want to punch in the face. We have all read the heroines we hate—whether they are virginal lip biters, whiney pains in our asses or just downright not likeable. Like at all. You know the ones I’m talking about. The stories we will read because we really like the guy but in the back of our minds all we can think is: “What the hell is wrong with him? What is he doing with her???” You know the heroines I’m talking about. The ones who are served with an eye roll and a side of Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. But here’s the thing! C and Lo have never given me a heroine who I want to consistently punch in the face or kick in the shin. From Chloe to Harlow, I have loved the strength and the spunk C and Lo consistently give these girls! So…if you like strong female leads you love to love, Harlow is your girl!

I love Harlow and Finn together on so many levels. Harlow has got to be pretty spectacular if I’m not screaming, “Finn! Pick me! Choose me! Love me!!!!” Although…if Harlow were to accidentally fall off Finn’s boat and drown in the Pacific, I’m here for you, Finn!!!! Totally kidding…and anyway, Harlow is a kickass swimmer. Everything is fine: Finn and Harlow Forever!!!! So Finn…

We know that Dirty Rowdy Thing is book 2 of the Wild Seasons series.  We briefly met Finn in Sweet Filthy Boy but didn’t really get to know him because we had our unbelievably adorable Ansel keeping our hearts a flutter. But while Ansel brought the sweetness (along with the filth…don’t forget the filth!), Finn is on a completely different level. Finn is my dream. Write it down. Of all of C and Lo’s men, Finn is at the top of my list! Shhhhhh! Don’t tell Will…or Max…or Bennett…or Ansel…Aghhhhhh!!! This is getting complicated. But I am telling you. Finn is THAT good.

Finn has this strength. Not just physical brute strength but this inner strength as well. He is so together that he puts all other men to shame. He has a beautiful soul that you can see through his eyes. His eyes often may be hidden under that baseball cap but when you look into his eyes—you can see it. You can see what Harlow sees and you can see why he is the one for me. I mean, you can see why he’s the one for Harlow. I think that Finn may also be the dirtiest of all C and Lo’s men. Maybe. And you thought Bennett did things with panties (insert wink). And oh, what Finn can do with a rope. Who knew I’d like to take up fishing??? :)

Okay…so as spoiler free as I can get, I can tell you a couple things: You will LOVE Finn. You will LOVE Harlow. You will LOVE the two of them together. You will never look at Canadian men the same way again. AND! Once you read Dirty Rowdy Thing, you will want to read it again and again—not just for the story (which will knock your socks off!) but to re-live the beauty C and Lo paint for you in this book. From Finn’s eyes to the sunrises to the sunsets to the pool at Harlow’s parent’s house, C and Lo paint such vivid pictures that you feel like you are there. C and Lo give good mental visuals…and not in that way, pervs! Well…that way too, but that’s not what I’m talking about at this particular moment.

Oh! One more thing! Once you finish Dirty Rowdy Thing and you are basking in the glow of loving all things Harlow and Finn…there’s going to be something niggling at you in the back of your mind. In the back of your head you will be thinking: Is it time for Dark Wild Night yet because I HAVE to know what happens with Oliver and Lola! I mean…I. NEED. TO. KNOW!!!!

So there ya go…pretty spoiler-free, right? All you really need to know is: BUY. THIS. BOOK!!!! You won’t regret it! Promise!!! To one-click any and ALL Christina Lauren books, go here: http://christinalaurenbooks.com/books/?c=adult !!!!! Fall in love with Finn and let’s talk, eh? :)

xoxo 

Dirty Rowdy Thing!!!!

Finnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I don’t even know where to begin when talking Dirty Rowdy Thing so I think Finnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! is a perfect place to start. Holy hot Canadian. I love Finn. A lot. But before I start professing my love for Finn and Harlow, I have to take a moment to talk about the authors who gave us this book. C (Christina) and Lo (Lauren).

The stars must have been aligned just perfectly when the universe put C and Lo together. They are pure magic. Magic, I say! And here’s why: There are several authors I adore. There are plenty of books I love. We all know this. But never! NEVER has an author wowed me every single time in a ‘I can’t believe they did it again!’ kind of way. There’s always a bit of, “x was good, but I liked y better.” C and Lo weren’t immune to my special kind of crazy in the beginning either.

Here’s a little of how my crazy went: WHY are they not writing about Bennett again? How could they do this to me? I’m not going to like this Max character!...Max!!!! Oooooooooooooooooomg! I love Max! Where has he been all by life! Bennett is great but Max! Whoa. I’m trading my panty ripper for this British exhibitionist…Ughhhhhhhh….they are doing it again. Whyyyyyyy???? WHY are they not writing about Max again? How could they do this to me? I’m not going to like this Will character!...Will!!!! Dr. William Sumner is my FAVORITE Beautiful  boy! How did that happen? Hmmm…some kind of C and Lo trickery! But then C and Lo gave us Bennett, Max, and Will together in Beautiful Beginning!!!!  I swear that the van ride with the three of them in Beautiful Beginning is one of my favorite scenes in the history of any book ever written. Ever. Brilliant!!!!

So then, as you can imagine, my crazy started all over again when I learned that my Beautiful  boys were being traded in for the Wild Seasons series…until I met Ansel in Sweet Filthy Boy…ooooooh la-la! Ansel!...but get this: Ansel has nothing on Finn! Finnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!! See what happened here? They did it. Again! Just when I thought I couldn’t love a book and a character more than the last, C and Lo did it again! How?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? I should probably spend less time wondering how and more time just saying THANK YOU! Thank you C and Lo for making me fall in love over and over again.

I am convinced that C and Lo are indeed magical writing unicorns! I mean, what other explanation could there be? Dirty Rowdy Thing releases tomorrow and I need each and every one of you to listen carefully. Are you listening? BUY. THIS. BOOK!!!!! If you haven’t read every book ever written by Christina Lauren, do it now. You won’t regret it. I promise. I’ll even make it easy for you! Go here: http://christinalaurenbooks.com/books/?c=adult to order each and every book. You’re welcome:)

Full review of Dirty Rowdy Thing coming tomorrow but in the event that you haven’t preordered the goodness that is Finn yet, do it now!!!! What better way than to wake up than with this piece of magic in your Kindle??? One more sleep until Dirty Rowdy Thing will have you swooning too! Love, love, love Finnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

xoxo

Ugly Love = Ugly Cry...you know...the usual:)

Okayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokay…as I’m sitting down to write this, that’s all that keeps running through my mind. It’s like: Where do I begin? I need to focus here. And then it starts again…Okayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokayokay. Okay. For real this time. Here I go. Okay.

Two words: Ugly Love

Three more words: BUY. THIS. BOOK.

Eight more words: WHY does she ALWAYS do this to me?

You know, maybe the question shouldn’t be ‘WHY?,’ rather; HOW?!?!? Every. Single Time. 

So here’s the deal. I pre-ordered Ugly Love forever ago because…well, because it has Colleen Hoover’s name on it and I’m buying whatever she’s selling. I knew it would hit my Kindle first thing Tuesday morning but then I saw people tweeting that B&N had it. B&N was selling the hard copies early. Hmmmph. What’s a girl to do? I don’t NEED this book now. It will be in my Kindle Tuesday morning. I don’t even like reading real books. They make it difficult (read: impossible) to read in bed in the dark. They are a pain to take on the elliptical and turning actual pages? *insert whining* Oh! And if I want to highlight something, I have to use an actual post-it instead of a swipe of my finger to highlight my favorite parts? What kind of medieval torture is this? Reading real actual books is hard. That’s what I kept telling myself anyway.

But it was there. I knew it was there because I called my local B&N to see if they had it and they did! And they even offered to hold a copy for me at the counter. I mean, after all, they had done all this work and were being so nice. How could I say no? AND the book is SO pretty. So, so, soooooooooo pretty. I think it’s my favorite of all Colleen’s covers. AND! I want Colleen to sign it one day. You see, I want to win her competition! You know, the one where she comes to your book club? Yeah. BUT I want her to come to Vegas when me and all my book besties are there in October. More on that later…

So yesterday I got a copy of Ugly Love in my hot little hands and it’s even prettier in person! I love this cover. Have I mentioned that yet? It’s pretty. Like really pretty. But enough about the outside. Let’s talk about what’s on the inside. No spoilers. Promise! 

There’s this part in Ugly Love where Tate says, “Until this moment, I thought a kiss was a kiss was a kiss. I had no idea kisses could mean different things and feel so completely opposite from one another.” Well, I say, “Until Colleen Hoover, I thought a book was a book was a book. I had no idea books could mean different things and feel so completely opposite from one another.” I say this because EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. she gets me. How does she do that? Just when you think you know where the story is going, Colleen lets you know that you don’t really know jack sh*t. It’s her way of telling me that a book is not a book is not a book—and especially not her books because they are all vastly different yet equally cry-inducing. It’s fascinating really. Disturbing, even. She is incredible. Incredible.

SO I don’t know the answer to the ‘Why?’ or the ‘How?’ Colleen does this but I do know that I am thankful. I am thankful that she took a chance on writing. I am thankful that she is a wonderful daughter who just wanted to write a book for her mom because that one act of kindness—that has given us some of the most genuine, and heart-wrenching books that earn their way to the top of the NY Times Bestsellers List by the quality and heart of the content alone. Colleen doesn’t write rainbows and sunshine. She writes books that will rip your heart out, keep you up reading past your bedtime, often resulting in you waking up with a swollen and puffy face as a result of the ugly cry she elicited. But at the end of the day, you keep coming back for more because it’s always worth it. Colleen always makes it worth it.

I know what you are wondering. Yes. The answer is YES. You will cry when you read Ugly Love. You will cry more than once. You will also get that sinking feeling in your stomach every time you open a chapter from Miles’s point of view because you know—you just know Colleen is about to bring the pain. But you can’t look away no matter how anxious it makes you because it’s always worth it. Colleen always makes it worth it. Of all Colleen’s books, Hopeless sits at the tippy top of my Colleen list. But guess what? Guess who gives the unforgettable Dean Holder a run for his money? Yep. Miles Archer. You NEED some Miles in your life. Trust me. I love Miles and I love this book and I love Colleen. Wow. That’s a whole lot of love:)

Full review of Ugly Love to come upon release but at this time, the only thing you need to know is that you NEED to buy this book. Buy it here! Read it. Cry your face off. Love it!!!!!!! Oh! And while you are one-clicking the book, also one-click Griffin Peterson’s song Ugly Love. Find it here! Oh…also stock up on tissues—you know, standard when reading a Colleen Hoover book. I promise that Ugly Love is worth EVERY laugh, every tear, and every little crack in your heart throughout the book. Happy reading!!!!

xoxo 

Tamed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Is it July already? Yes indeedy!!!!! Do you know what that means? Do you!?!?!?!?! It means that Tamed by the one and only Emma Chase releases in only 5 more sleeps! 5. More. Sleeps. Aghhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!! I'm excited! I love Emma. A lot. AND I love Tamed a lot too!!! You may remember a little of my crazy when I first read Tamed:   http://smuttastic.blogspot.com/2014/05/t-m-e-d.html

And now it’s time!!! It’s almost time for everyone to buy and read and love this book. Pre-order this book now so that you have it waiting on your Kindle for you on July 15^th! Here’s the  link!!!!!

I cannot wait to gush and gush and gush some more in my review. I. LOVE. THIS. BOOK!!!!!

To those of you who may whine a little b/c it’s not Drew. I promise you this: You will LOVE Matthew. You will. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind. I adore him and I’m the biggest Drew whore around! And! An added bonus with Tamed  is that we get to see characters we already know and love. For example…The Bitch:) Here's a little of Alexandra with Matthew and Dee... 

See…that right there gives me the warm and fuzzies:) I’m a big fan. Huge! I should probably start writing my review now b/c it’s going to take a while!!!! Do yourself a favor and clear your schedule for July 15^th. You are going to need that day to fall in love with Matthew!

xoxo

magical unicorns and such...

I am not a writer. I have said this a bazillion times. I have no interest in ever being a writer. Period. However, I am a reader. I love to read. Wait. Let me clarify. I love to read great books by talented authors. I will support authors I love even when they write less than great books. I was thinking about this the other day as I read a book and all I could think was: What the hell just happened here? What did she do?!?! Why?!?!? How did this go so wrong so fast? Let me double check that this is the same author I love. Yep. It is. Crap. Why?!?!?

So what is a reader to do in this era of ‘self-publishing, I know how to hold a pencil so I am going to write a book’ book writing? I’ll tell you what a lot of people do. They take to social media whether it’s in the form of blogs or Twitter or the book with a face that shall not be named and they rip the books and authors to shreds. Well, that’s one approach. I, however, want to take a different approach. Asking myself the ‘why/how the actual fuck did this happen?’ question led me to think…well, not all authors can knock it out of the park every time. I mean, that’s ridiculous. Who can write book after book that you fall head over heels in love with? That’s impossible. Or is it…

It was a light bulb moment! I heard Gru from Despicable Me in my head….LIGHTBULB!!!!! There are some authors who knock my socks off every single time. Specifically—right here and right now—I am talking about Christina Lauren (C and Lo). They are like magical unicorns! But not! I mean, they may indeed be magical unicorns disguised as humans but I have met them in real life so I assure you that they do indeed exist and are even more fantastic in person. BUT it makes me wonder…how do they do it? Do they never drop the ball because there are two of them?

Do you think that they ever read each other’s work and send each other notes that read something like: Did you ingest too much lip gloss? Our readers will have our heads if we try to put that in our book. OR a Have you been drinking again? No. Just no. And of course I envision them doing this with love—you know, throwing in a *falls at Lo’s feet* or a *pats lap* Any and all input, insight, criticism, ANYTHING!, all with love and knowing that they love each other more than anything and that they can genuinely call each other out on anything that is less than CLotastic.. Individually they are each incredible. Together they are a force of nature.

So is that it? Is that why they knock it out of the park every single time? Because they are individually incredibly talented with the best in-house beta readers in the form of each other? Do they have that trust amongst each other that they know whatever they say to each other in the writing and editing process is said with love and the other’s best interest at heart? Is that why they are at the top of their game? And if so, are other authors taking note? Is this the magic answer? I’m not saying that all authors should take on a co-author. No. Heavens no. BUT shouldn’t authors have beta readers to read their books and give them genuine and honest feedback? Is that what the world needs? Is that why I finish so many books thinking: What the hell just happened here? but am in my happy place any time I finish a Christina Lauren book? Or is it because they are indeed magical unicorns? Hmmmm…I’m gonna have to noodle on that for a little bit…

I guess the moral of this post is that C and Lo are magical unicorns. Wait. No. That’s not it. Hold on. The moral of this post is that there are A LOT of authors and even more books out there. You are not going to love every book you read. But here’s what not to do: don’t go to social media and rip the book and author to shreds. Not cool. At the very least, be kind and constructive when reviewing. But say you just read a book that has really ruined your day because it’s not what you expected from that author or that book—take a breath and pick up a book written by an author you love to help restore your faith. For me, it’s my magical unicorns. I’m currently re-reading Beautiful Player because one cannot go wrong with that book! So go forth and find your own magical unicorns….or just stick with the originals:) If you haven’t yet read anything by C and Lo, go HERE!!!!!

Happy reading, beautiful people!!!

xoxo 

Rusty Nailed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have wanted this book since I finished Wallbanger. I take that back. I have wanted this book since BEFORE I finished reading Wallbanger. I remember being half-way through Wallbanger and thinking: Is there another book? Is there more? There HAS to be more!!!! And then…then it happened…the book gods smiled down upon me and on the 7^th day, Alice Fucking Clayton said: Let there be Rusty Nailed!!!

Simon is back!!!! And Caroline! And Clive! Did I mention Simon? Because Simon IS back!!! Don’t believe me?

He was like a naughty work of art. Then he lifted his head and opened his eyes. Singularly focused, dark, and of one mind-set. Simon was about to fuck.

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooof!!!!!! I told you Simon was back!!!! I am going to write a super long review for Steph’s blog in a couple of days, but this is what I have to say about Rusty Nailed right now. Are you ready? Here it goes: BUY. THIS. BOOK.

Don’t give me the ‘Do you know how long my TBR list is?’ spiel because I give zero fucks. Harsh? I think not! We are talking about Simon Parker after all!!!! Buy Rusty Nailed here:  http://www.amazon.com/Rusty-Nailed-The-Cocktail-Series-ebook/dp/B00GEEB23U 

Oh! I have one other thing to say about this book before I post my review on Steph’s blog on July 9^th. Don’t read Rusty Nailed with any preconceived notions as to how this sequel ‘should’ go down. Yes, it’s a sequel. Yes, you know and love these characters. BUT let Alice take you on this journey with Simon and Caroline. Let ALice tell you the story she wants to tell you and not the story you want to hear. I promise—it’s Alice Fucking Clayton after all. She won’t let you down. Promise. Don’t believe me? How about a little of this:

“Simon?”

“Hmm?”

“You awake?”

“Huh-uh.”

“Just wanted to tell you I love you.”

“Mmm.”

“Caroline?

“Hmm?”

“I love you too.”

“Mmm.”

“Caroline?”

“Mmm?”

“You wanna fool around?”

“If I said no, what would happen?”

                    “I’d lie here next to you, thinking dirty thoughts.” 

Yeah…that’s that I thought:) Simon so owns me. And you too…I know it! Rusty Nailed: Buy it! Read it! Love it!!!!

xoxo

“Aghhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! OMG. You’re Colleen Hoover!!!!!”

Soooooo…I had a fangirl moment over the weekend. I met THE Colleen Hoover. Can you believe it?!?!? It happened. I can’t even make this stuff up! I have to take a moment to explain something to you—in case you didn’t already know…Colleen is the coolest of the cool. True story. I’ll explain but let me tell you a little about accidentally meeting Colleen.

Who remembers me having a moment when these babies arrived in the mail a couple weeks ago?

Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Colleen was finally coming to Chicago!!!! I was excited. Super. Duper. Excited. I had big plans to keep my fangirl under control. Big plans. Welp, the day finally arrived and I was excited but I was sure I’d be able to control myself. Yeah…that lasted until about the time we arrived at Hotel Chicago. If you haven’t been to or stayed at Hotel Chicago, you should really consider it next time you are in town. It’s really hip and funky and scary close to the House of Blues.

So it was all under control until we walked in and saw a sign indicating Colleen Hoover was in the house!!!!!…then I started to get really excited. Hmmmmm…4^th floor you say? We are early so let’s just go upstairs to see where it is so we will know where we’re going. As soon as we get off the elevator, we see this:

Cool, right!?!? So we were just standing there taking some pictures and the elevator dings and I turn just in time to scream like a little girl. It was an, “Aghhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! OMG. You’re Colleen Hoover!!!!!” scream. The scream was also followed by an “OMG. You’re Colleen Hoover!!!!!” I did not expect that AT ALL. I thought Murphy would have her stashed at an undisclosed location away from the crazies like me!

So did Colleen run screaming in fear from that insanely loud greeting? No she did not. Do you think that’s because she is accustomed to fangirls reacting to her like that upon sight? She simply smiled and gave me a sweet “Hello” and a “Yes I am.” Holy crap. She then walked over and started helping take out all of her books she brought to sell. Whoa. She was right there. She clearly was busy and had a million things to do but I wanted to give her a gift before she got all crazy with the hundreds of readers who would be turning out so I walked up and asked her if I could give her something and she was the sweetest. My uber crafty friend who has endured my crazy since college made this for Colleen:

I told her I stalk (in a very harmless way, of course) her via Twitter and am still waiting for my #HolderBabies. She looked up and said, “Are you Dana? Are you @smuttastic?” Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!!! She then came around the counter from where she was standing and gave me a hug. A Colleen Hoover hug!!!!!! Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! I then asked her if she would take a picture with my Flat Kat before we left her to get ready and she said yes!!! Look how cute she is:

Oh!!!! And as we were standing there, her AsSISTERnt, Murphy came up!!!! It’s funny because you see these people interacting on Instagram and Twitter so it’s like you know them but you don’t. Weird, right? Let me tell you what the coolest thing about Murphy is—she is a no BS kind of girl and I LOVE that. AND she had the coolest purple hair! Could she be any cooler? I think not. I know she is technically a Texas girl but she would make a kickass Chicagoan!!

So there’s the story of me meeting Colleen for the very first time. I am going to write more about the actual event and Colleen and Griffin and all of their collective awesomeness in my next post. Here’s a little hint: they are both even cooler in person!!!! More to come on that tomorrow.

xoxo

THIS GIRL is HOPELESSly in (Ugly;) LOVE with the one and only Colleen Hoover

It’s happening!!!! Colleen Hoover is coming to Chicago! Only 3 more sleeps!!!! THREE!!!! I’m excited. Who’s excited? THIS girl! That’s who. Ha! See what I did there? ;)

So a little about my love for Colleen…

You guys know when I love a book, I REALLY love a book and that’s all you hear about from me on here and on Twitter until I convince you all to read and love and obsess over the book with me. Well, here’s how my love for Colleen came about.

Soon after Hopeless released I received several tweets telling me that I NEEDED to read this book. I balked at first because it was centered around high schoolers.  Yes, I know…I’m an idiot. In any event, I one-clicked it and I think it was at the top of my Kindle when I got on the stairmaster that New Year’s Eve morning. I thought to myself, ‘What the hay! Let’s give it a try and if it can distract me from the pain of this death machine, that’s a bonus.’ Distract me? I hoped it would distract me?!?!? It completely and totally consumed me. This was a problem. It was New Year’s Eve day! I needed to work out, shower and prepare for my day! I was hosting a party that night. I didn’t have time to read this book and trust me: IT WAS ALL I WANTED TO DO!!!!

That day was a blur—I played a little game with myself. Finishing up task after task and after every task, I’d get 5 minutes of Hopeless  reading. House cleaned—check! Holder time. Drinks on ice—check! Holder time. Silverware polished—check! Holder time. Desserts made—check! Holder time. Appetizers in the oven—check! Holder time. And on and on it went…after every task was checked off the list, it was Holder time. Guests start arriving…aghhhhhhh!!! What about my Holder time?!?!? This was a problem. I couldn’t check out of my own party so I’d have to sneak away here and there. Oh! Let me put away your coat—check! Holder time. :) I was pathetic with a capital P!

By the time my house was full of people and I ran out of excuses to sneak away, I got very little Holder time the rest of the night. I will admit that I did take my phone with me to the bathroom and I may or may not have had more bathroom breaks than usual but that is neither here nor there. I may have then had too much to drink and accidentally misplaced my phone so Holder time would be on hold until the next day.

I woke up New Year’s Day at the crack of dawn—with very little sleep—to a house that was a complete disaster and a hangover that was trying to kill me. What did I do? First things first: find my phone! Holder needs me!!!!! Okay. Yeah, I know. He doesn’t need me. I need him! The book gods were smiling down because I quickly found my phone. I spent the rest of that morning and afternoon reading Hopeless. Oh. My. God. Colleen Hoover has owned me since then.

I remember when I discovered the meaning of Holder’s tattoo for the first time. That memory is forever seared into my brain. Gasping! There was gasping! I remember after piece after piece was revealed thinking: How did I not see that coming?!?! while simultaneously thinking: How could I have ever seen that coming!?!?! There is so much about this book that I love. Oh so much. I’ll profess my love for Losing Hope tomorrow but holy hell. Hopeless will forever go down as one of my favorite books in the history of ever. If you haven’t read it yet, you must do so NOW. Like yesterday NOW. Do you hear me?!?!? Go HERE!!!!

And another thing…aside from Colleen writing one of my favorite books in the history of ever, she did something else. She gave me one of my nearest and dearest friends and she doesn’t even know it. As I was tweeting about sneaking away from my New Year’s Eve party to read this book, a certain someone who saw my tweets was intrigued. She tells me now that all she could think was: this must be a great book if she’s willing to miss out on a New Year’s Eve party of all parties. So she one-clicked Hopeless and fell in love with Holder and the incredible Colleen Hoover and by default, meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!! I now get to call Kat one of my very best friends and I have Colleen to thank for that!!!! Kat--I loooooooooooooooove you!!! So while Kat lives all the way in Canada, I will be bringing my Flat Kat to the signing on Saturday. Are you ready for me and Flat Kat and treats, Colleen?

So…can you see now why I am so excited that THE Colleen Hoover is coming to Chicago?!?! Giddy! I am seriously giddy!!!! Be prepared good people. More Colleen love to come over the next couple days because THIS GIRL is HOPELESSly in (Ugly;) LOVE with the one and only Colleen Hoover.

xoxo 

Whoa.

Okay...I'm officially the worst blogger in the history of ever. Real life has seriously been in my way as of late. Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. On the up side...more ridiculousness to come sooners rather than laters...

You see, my college roommate has agreed to go on yet another adventure with me. We are going to see Colleen Hoover when she comes to town this weekend. Eeeeeeeeeeeeep! Colleen. Hoover. I know that Colleen has written a bazillion books and I own then all but Colleen owns me with Hopeless and Losing Hope. Holy Holder!!!!!

I can tell you exactly where I was and what I was doing when I read Hopeless for the first time. How often does that happen? I remember it all. I also remember the swollen face I had the very next day from that ugly cry Colleen gave me. It seems appropriate that her next book is titled Ugly Love, yeah? Okay...so yeah, I'm gonna try really heard to be less of a delinquent. I have to--right? After all, there will be a full Colleen wrap up! Ooooooooooh. Now that I'm typing this, I'm getting excited.

Colleen, here I come!!!!!

T-A-M-E-D

Okay. I don’t even know where to begin. My brain is a pool of randomness that is going to spill all over this blog so I’m warning you now. This is your chance to walk away before the dam breaks or the wave crashes…

You have been warned. 

Splash!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So a couple weeks ago I saw that some bloggers were tweeting pics of his/her ARC of Tamed. At first, this was me:

This was me because I love Emma Chase. Emma gave me Drew!!!!! So while my initial reaction was my scrunched up nose face, I soon rationalized that Tamed wasn’t Drew’s story so it was okay. Tamed tells the story of Matthew and Delores after all. It would be totally fine. I could wait. You see, rationalizing things helps me sleep at night and keeps my friends from going completely mental as a result of my crazy. Rationalization is my friend.

Soooooo I rationalized that Tamed was out there in the hands of few but I could wait. But then! THEN something wonderful happened. I received a kickass surprise! You see, Steph attended the Belles on Wheels tour and met Emma! I repeat: She met Emma! She even face timed me!!! Oh…picture this…I saw a face time was coming through from Steph—I didn’t think twice about not having any makeup on (still in pain from a sunburn I got the day before!) or being in a car full of people. Steph has seen me without makeup. So I hit accept. Can you imagine my surprise when Emma’s face popped up on my screen?!?!? I almost died right there! I screamed so loud I earned a collective, ‘shuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut up!!!!’ from everyone in the car. I was confined in the car when all I wanted to do was jump up and down!

Right…so yes…Steph met Emma! A couple days later I received a package in the mail from Steph. You guessed it…it was Tamed!!!!!! See ya later rationalization, how did I ever live without this book!?!? Look…isn’t it pretty?!?!?

Yes…all that orange you see? Yes…those are all of my notes!!! I cannot wait to get it in my kindle to highlight properly! Until then, old school post-its it is! As you can see by my post its, I’ve clearly finished it. And you know what?!?!? Complete and total disclosure. Are you ready?!?! I loved every bit of it! This is not a review. I repeat: This is NOT a review! I will post my review closer to release of Tamed  but I need to take a minute to talk about this book.

Don’t for one moment think that you don’t need this book because it’s not Drew’s story. Don’t make that mistake. Here’s why: Nobody loves Drew more than me. I will fight a girl for Drew. He is loooooooooooooooooooved by me!!!! But here’s the thing—here’s what Emma does so brilliantly in Tamed. She makes you love Matthew and Dee too! She makes you want to know more about their story. As a reader I wasn’t sitting around waiting for a Drew and Kate cameo. I was all in. I wanted to know how this was all going to go down with Matthew and Dee. That is HUGE for me because I’m a Drew girl!!!

So while this is huge for me—Emma did something else in Tamed. She gave us insight into Drew and The Bitch from Matthew’s eyes. I was not expecting this. At all. We now know why Drew is so proficient in taking the Lord’s name in vain and why he feels the way he does about Catholicism as a general rule. We also get the most incredible insight into The Bitch and her relationship with the men in her life—Steven, Drew, and Matthew. I love her. I need more of her. Too soon to put in a request for a book centered around Alexandra? :)

Like I said…this is NOT a review…this is just me, finishing a book I looooooved and telling you that you must add this to your TBR list. Pre-order now so you don’t forget! Here’s the link:

http://www.amazon.com/Tamed-Tangled-Emma-Chase-ebook/dp/B00EB9ZA7O/ref=sr_1_1_title_1_kin?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1400443907&sr=1-1&keywords=tamed+by+emma+chase 

As I was reading Tamed, I thought to myself numerous times: Holy crap. Is Emma like this in real life? Is she really this funny? This clever? God, I love her. Think she wants to be my friend? Holy crap. This is good! *REPEATED OVER AND OVER AND OVER*

Okay…that’s my story…I’m now going to start sorting through all my post-its so I can write a review that will do this incredible book justice! Love, love, loooooooooooooooooooooove it!!! 

J’adore ce livre!!!!!

It’s here! It’s here! It’s here! It’s here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Do you hear me!?!?!? It. Is. Here.

3 words: Sweet Filthy Boy

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!!!! I love this book. A lot.

Do you know what else I love? I love these authors. They don’t let me down. Ever. Every time they write a new book I get a little (read: a lot!) antsy because they are writing a book about characters I don’t yet know. But every time they make me love the new character more than the last. Every. Time. How do they do that?

I don’t know how they do it but I do know that I have never been disappointed by one-clicking any book from Christina Lauren. They are on my list of go-to authors I know will not disappoint me. They are also on the short list of authors I will offer up an internal organ for an ARC.

So here’s the deal…Ansel is finally here!!!! One-click Sweet Filthy Boy and spend the rest of your day in your happy place.

One-click Sweet Filthy Boy HERE!!!!

Oh…and to help you out…go ahead and pre-order Dirty Rowdy Thing HERE!!!! 

You go fall in love with this sweet, sweet, yet filthy boy and then let’s talk! J’adore ce livre!!!!!! ßHa! Look! Those six years of French were good for something:)

xoxo

Sweet Filthy Boy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I offered Enn a kidney for an ARC of Sweet Filthy Boy. True story. I wanted Sweet Filthy Boy in my hands THAT bad! She didn’t take me up on my kidney but she did send me an ARC and holy crap!!!!!! I knew it would be worth a kidney!!!! As soon as I finished Sweet Filthy Boy I took to my blog and wrote this:

http://smuttastic.blogspot.com/2014/03/this-is-not-review-i-repeat-this-is-not.html

Geeeeeeeeeesh! I had a lot to say when I finished Sweet Filthy Boy! That’s what C and Lo do to me every time they write a book. Every. Single. Time. Do you know what else this duo does to me every time they write a book? They make me fall in love with new characters even though I am blissfully happy with the characters they have already given me. Every. Single. Time. It’s fascinating really. I’m waiting for the time when they write a book and I can say, “Ha! They should have stuck with Bennett or Max or Will or Ansel…” Yeah…that hasn’t happened yet. They just keep getting better and better.

I love Sweet Filthy Boy. I think it may be my favorite Christina Lauren book in the history of ever (Shhhhhh! Don’t tell Will!).I never knew I wanted a French boy in my life. Ask anyone who knows me—I’m partial to British rugby players.  But this! This book makes me want to dust off my French and take a trip to the city of lights to find my own Ansel. I think that Ansel is everything I never knew I wanted. Sure, he’s filthy but the sweetness that is Ansel makes him a keeper. Can I have him? Can I? Can I? Can I!?!?!?!?!?

I don’t want to spoil a moment of this story but I will tell you this. You will looooooooooooove both Ansel and Mia! This is huge for me because I am often hard on my heroines. I know, it’s me and my ‘I would be so much better for him!!!’ mindset that I have when I find book boyfriends worth swooning over.

Do you know what else you will love about this book? You will love the way Christina Lauren makes you feel like you are there. They make this world so clear and so alive that you feel like you are not sitting in your jammies devouring a great book. Rather, you feel like you are in the car on that desert road to Vegas, in the crowded Vegas club and exploring the streets of Paris. It’s fascinating! The details in this book alone are my happy place. 

Sweet Filthy Boy is the first book in Christina Lauren’s Wild Seasons series and holy mother of God! If Sweet Filthy Boy is any indication as to what is to come in the Wild Seasons series, I may love this series even more than the Beautiful series!!! How is that even possible?!?

You can one-click Sweet Filthy Boy here!!!!

Go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sweet Filthy Boy is officially on my “We can’t be friends if you don’t read and love this book” list. It’s that serious. Now quick! One-click this little piece of heaven and then let’s chat! I can’t wait for everyone to fall in love with the perfection that is Sweet Filthy Boy! Now go! Stop reading this and go!!!! The book boyfriend of your dreams is waiting for you! 

Simon gives good nook...have YOU been Wallbanged!?!?

I originally planned this post to be about the actual signing at the Chicago Author Event but I must take a moment…you know, interrupting regularly scheduled programming and all…to talk about this…

What the whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!?!?!?!?!?!?! How could one of my dearest tweeps have not read Wallbanger? How is that even possible!?!? I would ask, ‘Does she not know me at all?!?!’ but she knows me…she so knows me:) And so does everyone else included on that tweet. I believe the responses ranged from ‘somebody is in trouble’ to most likely silent, in their heads, ‘oh for the love of God, we are never going to hear the end of this.’

Three words people: Alice Fucking Clayton

One more word: Wallbanger!!!!

Seventeen more words: If you don’t read and love Wallbanger, we can’t be book friends. Simon is a hard limit.

If you haven’t read Wallbanger yet, don’t tell me. I don’t think my heart can take it. If you haven’t read Wallbanger yet, I’ll make it easy for you…one click the perfection that is Simon HERE !!! After you have one-clicked, then we can talk!

When I first read Wallbanger, I tweeted Alice begging for a sequel. She told me to take a hike. Well, not really…it was more like, “Sorry. It’s a standalone.” *insert crying and flailing* On the outside I was all: 

On the inside I was all: 

Dear Christ. I NEEDED more Simon!!! You know when a book is just so good a standalone just won’t do? THAT is what happened when I finished Wallbanger! Apparently there were lots of other crazies just like me needing more…so…guess what!?!?!?! Oh yeah…Alice is back with more Simon in Rusty Nailed out June 24^th!!!!!! Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! I can’t even wait! Pre-order that baby right HERE!!!!!!

Okay…there…I feel a little bit better now that I got that out! As you can see, Wallbanger has a spot firmly on my “we can’t be book friends if you don’t read and love this book” list. It is that good. Again, if you haven’t read it yet, don’t tell me. Rather, one-click, sit back, and prepare to get Wallbanged, kittens!!!

xoxo