Waiting on Wednesday: Little Mercies by Heather Gudenkauf

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine. So here is my choice, 

Little Mercies by Heather Gudenkauf
Release Date: June 24, 2014

I love Heather Gudenkauf and cannot get enough of her books.  This one looks like it will be another stunner.  I love how her books grip you, don't let you go and are very thought-provoking.

About the Book:

In her latest ripped-from-the-headlines tour de force, New York Times bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf shows how one small mistake can have life-altering consequences.

Veteran social worker Ellen Moore has seen the worst side of humanity;the vilest acts one person can commit against another. She is a fiercely dedicated children's advocate and a devoted mother and wife. But one blistering summer day, a simple moment of distraction will have repercussions that Ellen could never have imagined, threatening to shatter everything she holds dear, and trapping her between the gears of the system she works for.

Meanwhile, ten-year-old Jenny Briard has been living with her well-meaning but irresponsible father since her mother left them, sleeping on friends' couches and moving in and out of cheap motels. When Jenny suddenly finds herself on her own, she is forced to survive with nothing but a few dollars and her street smarts. The last thing she wants is a social worker, but when Ellen's and Jenny's lives collide, little do they know just how much they can help one another.

A powerful and emotionally charged tale about motherhood and justice, Little Mercies is a searing portrait of the tenuous grasp we have on the things we love the most, and of the ties that unexpectedly bring us together.



What are you waiting on this week?  Join in Jill's linky by following my link above or just let me know in the comments, you know me, always on the lookout for new books!

Mini Review & Giveaway: You Again by Ashlee Mallory

You Again by Ashlee Mallory
Publisher: Entangled Ignite
Pub Date: March 24, 2014
ASIN: B00IQOJE4K

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Mini-Review:
A three-hour baseball game last night for my oldest son and The Voice ate into my reading time as I planned to finish You Again last night (yes I'm a procrastinator).  So I'm not quite done, but today is my tour date.  So I will give you my thoughts on the first third of the book and then a full review in a day or two.

I love this book.  I can't wait to read on it.  In fact I took  my iPad to the ballfield, but my boy played so that demanded my attention (his first middle school game).  Allie and Sam are great characters.  I love that she had a crush on him in high school.  I like the chemistry they have together (but it's not rushed).  I am also thoroughly enjoying the mystery and getting to know other characters in the book.  One more thing I love, that both protagonists have children.  Something you just don't see often.  It's an interesting book so far and if the rest follows what the first third is like, then this is sure to be a winner.  So just on that I do recommend this book.  I enjoy Ms. Mallory's writing style and I look forward to reading more by her!

Summary

A hopeless crush…

Back in high school, Allie McBride thought the sun set around Sam Fratto’s smiles, even if they were only friends. Now she’s older, wiser, hotter, and teaching at the same school they grew up in. When Sam joins the faculty, she has a chance to make good on the crush that got away. But when a dead body turns up on school grounds, they realize there might be a murderer in their midst. The heat keeps getting hotter between Allie and Sam, but more might be in danger than their hearts…

The cute kid from high school is all grown up…

A family crisis brings true-crime writer Sam Fratto back to town after more than a decade’s absence. Teaching at his alma mater seems like a good way to pass the time—especially when he sees that Allie, the geeky, sweet-mannered girl from high school, has blossomed into the saucy teacher in the classroom next door. Too bad finding a dead body transforms his return into one of his true-crime books come to life. And when it seems the killer might be after Allie next, it’s up to him to keep her safe…

A killer determined to keep the past buried at any price…

As if dealing with the return of one ghost from her past wasn’t enough, it looks like the killer might be the person they least suspected. Someone from the past. Someone with something to hide. Someone who thinks Allie and Sam are getting a little too close to the truth. If Allie and Sam are going to get out of this alive, these two friends to lovers will have to work together…or die together…

Buy Links

Author Biography

Ashlee lives with her husband, two kids, a dog, and cat surrounded by the majestic mountains of her hometown of Salt Lake.

Born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, she always wanted to know what it was like to live on the other side of the mountains. In college, she interned a semester in DC and later attended law school in Syracuse, New York, where she also ventured to Israel for a summer semester. After graduating law school with a taste of what it’s like living in the bigger world, she moved back home to Salt Lake and took the Utah Bar Exam, got married, and settled in with her hubby and two wonderful kids. After a few more years in the legal realm, she grew restless and turned her pen to one of her first loves—writing stories.

Currently, when she’s not working the day job as in-house counsel, she spends her time with the family and squeezing in writing time—anything to avoid the housekeeping. Just kidding, honey! ;)

She writes with romance and humor at the heart of every story—and a healthy dash of mystery and suspense.

Hopefully she pulls it off.

Social Networking Links
Website

Blog
Twitter

Goodreads

Facebook


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Guest Blog: Jodi Thomas and Betting the Rainbow

It's that time again, time for another Harmony, Texas novel from Jodi Thomas.  You have heard me gush in the past about how much I love this series so I cannot wait to get my hands on my copy of Betting the Rainbow (hopefully today) and review it for you later this week.  Until then, let Jodi tell you a little about it and make sure you pre-order it because you know it will be great!

No fooling, my next book will be out April 1, 2014.  I had such fun writing this book in the Harmony series and hope everyone will love it as much as I do.

Of course, you’ll have the usual characters walking through Harmony.  Martha Q Patterson, Tyler Wright and his Kate, Alex Matheson and her husband Hank.  You’ll also have a character coming home.  For all of you who love Ronny Logan, you’ll be happy to know her story isn’t over.

This novel plays out three great love stories on a small lake a few miles from Harmony, Texas.

One true love shines between a couple who met in high school and their building story has walked through several books.  This time Reagan and Noah are old enough to know their mind, but can love find them after they’ve grown apart?  She’s become a successful business woman and he’s a big time rodeo star.  Two people with such different lives have to figure out what is truly important.

Ronny Logan comes home looking for peace after dealing with the loss of her first love.  Thanks to the mysterious man next door, she discovers what passion is all about.  Only does passion equal a forever love?

Dusti Delaney’s  farm on the small lake off Rainbow Lane makes the third house.  She and her sister had to give up on their dreams when their mother fell ill, but Dusti is determined to try one more time.  If she can beat out a hundred cowboys in a charity poker game and get to Vegas, all she has to do is place in the money and her sister can go back to finish school.  Only problem is, she has to learn to play the game in two weeks and the only man who is good enough to teach her has flown in from Ireland to win.

In the mixed-up game of life not everything turns out as planned.  We can’t control all the ups and down or the good and bad things that come our way.  But just like poker, you’ve got to play the cards your dealt.

Take a chance on BETTING THE RAINBOW!

Jodi Thomas

www.jodithomas.com
Twitter.com/jodithomas
www.facebook.com/JodiThomasAuthor

BETTING THE RAINBOWRelease date: April 1, 2014
Publisher: Berkley
ISBN: 978-0-425-26840-7
Retail price: USA $7.99


  
NY Times and USA Today bestselling author Jodi Thomas returns to the “delightful” town of Harmony, Texas, where life has a way of making better plans than anyone ever imagined…

Thomas is a master at creating damaged yet appealing characters, and their expressions of love—as siblings, as friends, as partners—are intense and beautiful. Their paths to happiness are interwoven in an intricate tapestry with the tournament as backdrop, combining in an epic tale of the kind of love that lasts forever” –Publishers Weekly (starred review) on Betting the Rainbow
 
“I’ve never met a Jodi Thomas book that wasn’t absolutely dog eared from being read many times.”—Fresh Fiction

 

Jodi Thomas is the NY Times and USA Today bestselling author of 39 novels and 12 short story collections. A four-time RITA winner, Jodi currently serves as the Writer in Residence at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas.

www.jodithomas.com
Twitter.com/jodithomas
www.facebook.com/JodiThomasAuthor

Ignite March Release Blast (+ Giveaways)

Set fire to your passions with heart stopping suspense, adventure, and intrigue from Ignite. Each Ignite title features to-die-for heroes and kick-butt heroines on an emotional roller coaster ride toward love. With new books and new passions exploding every month, every Ignite novel is one you can’t put down until the last page is turned. To find out more about their titles, chat with authors, participate in special events, and to find out what books are coming next, visit the Entangled website, follow them on Twitter, and like their Facebook page.

I'm doing the tours for Pretty Reckless and You Again and can't wait.  I'm reading You Again right  now and loving it so far, so it looks like you really are in for a treat this month!

So today I'm happy to be featuring Ignite's March Releases!!

Pretty Reckless by Jodi Linton

Special $0.99 Introductory Price! 

Deputy Laney Briggs has long been considered reckless, but when a dead body turns up and her ex, Texas Ranger Gunner Wilson, decides to stick his boots into the town’s first murder case, she’ll be damned if she lets him trample all over her turf—and her life. His ability to undermine her libido is only outdone by her constant urge to butt heads with him. But when the bodies pile up, Laney has to ask the lethal bad boy for a hand—and a truce in exchange for his help. It might not be the best idea, but Laney has always been pretty reckless…  

Find Out More!

Giveaway

Lie By Night by Cathy Marlowe

Special $0.99 Introductory Price!

Cole Stewart’s mission to protect close friends from a pharmaceutical mastermind takes an unexpected turn when Emma Bailey runs head first into his investigation. Months ago he spent one night falling in love with her before a misunderstanding came between them. Now she’s not only a danger to his heart, but her brother is one of his key suspects. In their race to protect the people they love, Cole and Emma betray each other’s trust time and again, not realizing that trust—and their growing love for each other—is the only thing that can save them all.

Find Out More!

Giveaway

You Again by Ashlee Mallory

Special $0.99 Introductory Pricing!

In high school, Allie McBride thought the sun set around her friend Sam Fratto’s smiles. Now she’s older, wiser, hotter, and teaching at the same school they grew up in. When Sam joins the faculty, she has a chance to make good on the crush that got away. But when a dead body turns up on school grounds, they realize there might be a murderer in their midst. The heat keeps getting hotter between Allie and Sam, but more might be in danger than their hearts…

Find Out More!

Giveaway

Book Review: The Wanderers by Jessica Miller

The Wanderers by Jessica Miller
Publisher: Jessica Miller
Pub Date: Dec. 6, 2012
ISBN:  9781481171410
ASIN: B00AKC0SL4

Genre: Paranormal, New Adult

My Review:
Here's how I work a lot of the time.  An author, publicist or someone asks me to review a book.  I read the summary, decide I want to review it and then a few weeks later read the book.  I purposely don't re-read the summary because sometimes they tell me too much about the book and I form opinions up front.  So when I started The Wanderers, I had no idea what it was about (I can't seem to remember yesterday, but if When Doves Cry by Prince comes on the radio I can sing every word).  And I liked not knowing.  I went into the book with a clean slate and excited.

The Wanderers did not disappoint.  I was hooked from the first page.  Ella enticed me.  She's a nice girl, she's been through a rough time and she just wants to start over at college.  But there is a family secret and that leads to the start of the buildup of tension in the story.  Then there is college, Ella's best friend Josie who is interesting and Jack and Tristan.  I liked Jack okay, I had a friend like him in college.  But I loved Tristan.  Loved the love-hate relationship Ella had with him.  Even with his faults I knew he had a good heart.

There is a lot of back and forth and Ella could seem wishy-washy at times, but I really didn't feel that she was.  She really was trying to work out her feelings for Tristan, a known playboy which she didn't like yet she was attracted to him.  And Ella is the girl that can make a bad boy into a great man for one woman.  So the love/attraction part of the story is quite intriguing.  But that's not all there is to this book.  I'm not giving any spoilers, but let's say the book did not lack action.  I found it exciting the whole way through. The tension built well and though everything happens fast at the end, I never felt like it was rushed.  The pacing of the book was great, it hooked me and kept me enthralled until the very end.

The paranormal element is great and well-done.  I'm still not sure whether to classify this as New Adult or not, it's not YA because they are in college, but while there is some grittiness to the book, it's not as gritty as what I consider New Adult, but then again I think the true definition of the genre (kids in their late teens, early twenties trying to find themselves and their way in the world) then this does qualify.  Ella, Josie, Jack are all somewhat typical kids in their late teens feeling their way through the college scene, dating and just making up their minds (or not) about life.  So it does work.

Overall this book is stellar and I was so glad the author allowed me to read this and had Reborn (The Wanderers #2) also ready for me to review so I could jump right into reading it.  So I'm reading it now, look for it's review next week.  But if it's anything like The Wanderers, I'm in for  another fun ride that will keep me up late at night to see what will happen next!

My Rating: 5.0/5.0

Summary

What do you do when you learn your family is the one who's holding all the secrets? Secrets that could get you killed...

Ella is looking forward to starting college in the fall with her best friend Josie. She’s looking for a place where she can get away from her overbearing parents and two older annoying brothers. Unfortunately Ella realizes that sometimes the past comes back to haunt you.

Ella soon learns that the man who terrorizes her dreams is in fact real and coming after her.

When one of her classmates is murdered, Ella slowly recognizes this is not some strange coincidence. Ella fears that the boy she’s falling in love with is the one who stalks her dreams and no longer knows who she can trust.

When she finally learns the truth of her family's deepest secret, Ella has to face her demons by taking out one of the people she thought she could trust…before they kill her.

Buy Links

Author Biography (from Goodreads):

I live in a fantasy world and have an over active imagination. But the best part about that is I never stop creating new characters and new stories to share. I love writing and expressing myself in a way that everyone else can enjoy as well. I work in the salon most days, but when i'm not doing hair, I'm writing or reading.

Social Networking Links

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

***I received this book from the author for an honest review.  I was not compensated in any other way except receiving the book for free.  ***

What's Next 3/20

So last week the winner was Sever by Lauren DeStefano.  And I decided to bite the bullet and finally finish this series and I am so glad I did.  Review coming soon, but let's just say I found it to be an exciting and fitting conclusion to a series I have enjoyed.


So let's play this week.  Help me figure out what to read next.  I'm not including review books, these are either from my shelf, on my iPad (Kindle app) or from the library.  Want to participate? Head over to Icey Books and join in!



Dark Witch by Nora Roberts
Source: bought for my Kindle app

Why I want to read: I seem obsessed with catching up on Nora Roberts Trilogies lately. First it was The Inn Boonsboro, and I'm currently finishing up the last book of the In the Garden trilogy on audio. I just enjoy Nora's writing and this one looks an exciting start to her newest trilogy.

About the Book:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts comes a trilogy about the land we’re drawn to, the family we learn to cherish, and the people we long to love…

With indifferent parents, Iona Sheehan grew up craving devotion and acceptance. From her maternal grandmother, she learned where to find both: a land of lush forests, dazzling lakes, and centuries-old legends.

Ireland.

County Mayo, to be exact. Where her ancestors’ blood and magic have flowed through generations—and where her destiny awaits.

Iona arrives in Ireland with nothing but her Nan’s directions, an unfailingly optimistic attitude, and an innate talent with horses. Not far from the luxurious castle where she is spending a week, she finds her cousins, Branna and Connor O’Dwyer. And since family is family, they invite her into their home and their lives.

When Iona lands a job at the local stables, she meets the owner, Boyle McGrath. Cowboy, pirate, wild tribal horsemen, he’s three of her biggest fantasy weaknesses all in one big, bold package.

Iona realizes that here she can make a home for herself—and live her life as she wants, even if that means falling head over heels for Boyle. But nothing is as it seems. An ancient evil has wound its way around Iona’s family tree and must be defeated. Family and friends will fight with each other and for each other to keep the promise of hope—and love—alive.

Hopeless by Colleen Hoover

Source: purchased for my Kindle app

Why I want to read it:  I love New Adult and everyone raves about Colleen Hoover and this series so why not?


About the Book:

Sometimes discovering the truth can leave you more hopeless than believing the lies…

That’s what seventeen-year-old Sky realizes after she meets Dean Holder. A guy with a reputation that rivals her own and an uncanny ability to invoke feelings in her she’s never had before. He terrifies her and captivates her all in the span of just one encounter, and something about the way he makes her feel sparks buried memories from a past that she wishes could just stay buried.

Sky struggles to keep him at a distance knowing he’s nothing but trouble, but Holder insists on learning everything about her. After finally caving to his unwavering pursuit, Sky soon finds that Holder isn’t at all who he’s been claiming to be. When the secrets he’s been keeping are finally revealed, every single facet of Sky’s life will change forever.

Code by Kathy Reichs and Brendan Reichs (Virals #3)

Source: Library

Why I want to read this book: I love Kathy Reichs and I love the Virals series so I can't wait to get back and see what the gang is up to.

About the Book:

The Virals are put to the ultimate test when they find a geocache containing an ornate puzzle box. Shelton decodes the cipher inside, only to find more tantalizing clues left by "The Gamemaster." A second, greater geocache is within reach—if the Virals are up to the challenge.

But the hunt takes a dark turn when Tory locates the other box—a fake bomb, along with a sinister proposal from The Gamemaster. Now, the real game has begun: another bomb is out there—a real one—and the clock is ticking.



I'm going to stop with three this week.   So what should I read?  You can use the survey for ease but I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments as well.

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