Cover Reveal: Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas

Title: Birthday Girl Genre: Contemporary Romance Author: Penelope Douglas Release Date: April 17, 2018

Synopsis:
JORDAN He took me in when I had nowhere else to go.
He doesn’t use me, hurt me, or forget about me. He doesn’t treat me like I’m nothing, take me for granted, or make me feel unsafe.
He remembers me, laughs with me, and looks at me. He listens to me, protects me, and sees me. I can feel his eyes on me over the breakfast table, and my heart pumps so hard when I hear him pull in the driveway after work.
I have to stop this. It can’t happen.
My sister once told me there are no good men, and if you find one, he’s probably unavailable.
Only Pike Lawson isn’t the unavailable one.
I am.


PIKE I took her in, because I thought I was helping.
She’d cook a few meals and clean up a little. It was an easy arrangement.
As the days go by, though, it’s becoming anything but easy. I have to stop my mind from drifting to her and stop holding my breath every time I bump into her in the house. I can’t touch her, and I shouldn’t want to.
The more I find my path crossing hers, though, the more she’s becoming a part of me.
But we’re not free to give into this. She’s nineteen, and I’m thirty-eight.
And her boyfriend’s father.
Unfortunately, they both just moved into my house.

*BIRTHDAY GIRL is a stand-alone, contemporary romance suitable for ages 18+.

About The Author: Penelope Douglas is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Her books have been translated into thirteen languages and include The Fall Away Series, The Devil’s Night Series, and the standalones, Misconduct, Punk 57, and now Birthday Girl. Please look for Kill Switch (Devil’s Night #3), coming later this year, and the standalone, Motel, coming in 2019.
She lives in Las Vegas with her husband and their daughter.
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One week.

Private beach.

Invisible girl.

Jerk-faced bully.

What's the worst that could happen?

Kaitlyn Parker has no problem being the invisible girl, which is why she finds herself hiding in various cabinets and closets all over her college campus. Despite her best efforts, she can't escape the notice of Martin Sandeke--bad boy, jerkface bully, and the universe's hottest, wealthiest, and most unobtainable bachelor--who also happens to be Kaitlyn's chemistry lab partner.

Kaitlyn might be the only girl who isn't interested in exploiting his stunning rower's build, chiseled features, and family's billionaire fortune. Kaitlyn wants Martin for his brain, specifically to tabulate findings of trace elements in surface water.

When Kaitlyn saves Martin from a nefarious plot, Martin uses the opportunity to push Kaitlyn out of her comfort zone: spring break, one week, house parties, bathing suits, and suntan lotion. Can she overcome her aversion to being noticed? Will he be able grow beyond his self-centered nature? Or, despite their obvious chemistry, will Martin be the one to drive Kaitlyn into the science cabinet of obscurity for good?

My April TBR

So spring is finally here, however there is snow in my front yard.  Mother Nature apparently didn't get the memo that it is supposed to be warm, though the sun is out and it appears to be a beautiful day even if it is cold.  As all of us book lovers know, chilly days are just a good excuse to curl up in our favorite comfy place with a good book and a warm beverage, am I right?

My TBR is growing rapidly because let's face it there are so many great books out there.  I've mainly been focused on reading books for the Popsugar Reading Challenge and the ARCs I have for March.  I honestly don't think I'll get to all of these in April, but I'm sure going to try.  Some of these are ARCs that were generously provided by the publisher via Netgalley or Edelweiss+, many of them I have on hold at the library


In April I plan to read the following, and what I don't finish will get moved to May:

• Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
• I've already started this and its wonderful.  I was hoping to get this on audio because I think he's funny and I can only imagine that his delivery is spectacular.  His comedy is very apparent in the book as he relates his childhood in South Africa much the same way he does when he reads the "news".  It is a very educational book on apartheid from someone who lived it, and it is fascinating. 
• Furyborn by Claire Legrand
• This releases May 22nd.
• I've heard nothing but great things about this and I'm very grateful to have received an ARC of this to review.
• Unbreakable by Sara Ella
• This releases May 1st.
• This is the conclusion to the Unblemished Trilogy.  I've already started this and since its been a while since I read books 1 and 2, I'm having a hard time remembering where the series left off.  I'm going to have to skim read them or atleast go back to my reviews to get a feel for the series before continuing.  I do remember enjoying the first 2 books its just been too long.
• Lucky Charm and Charmed by J.A. Armitage
• These are both out already and are the conclusion to Charm, a Cinderella reverse fairy tale.  I really liked Charm and I'm anxious to see how the story wraps up.  
• To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
• I've heard great things about this, and it sounds fantastic.  I've been reading quite a few retellings and this is yet another one but this time in the vein of The Little Mermaid.
• Beard in Mind and Beard Science by Penny Reid
• I love this series.  Penny is one of my favorites, her characters are hilarious and lovable.  These are usually really quick reads for me because I can't put them down.
• Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi
• I really loved the original Shatter Me series and I'm excited to see where this continuation picks up.
• Smart but Scattered by Peg Dawson
• I don't plan to finish this in April but I do plan to start reading a few pages of this every day or atleast every week.  A mom I know recommended it and I've only gotten as far as the prologue.  I'm hoping that it helps me with my beautiful, brilliant, but scatterbrained child.  

I have a bunch of audiobooks on hold at the library, and there's no telling which one will come in when so I'll just list out what I've got on hold at the moment and we'll see what I get to.  I've also recently discovered Hoopla and that my library participates, so far the selection is decent and there is some stuff there that my library's overdrive catalog doesn't have, plus there's no waitlist.  I have a pretty decent commute to and from work, plus I listen to audiobooks at work when I can, while I'm working out, and while I'm doing chores.  Most of my completed books this year are on audio so this is a great way for me to knock off books I want to read while I'm doing something else.

• The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss
• I enjoyed The Name of the Wind and I'm really exited to learn more about Auri.  She was such an interesting character, but we didn't get to know much about her in the book.  I'm glad she gets her own.
• Timekeeper by Tara Sim
• This is for a reading challenge prompt dealing with time travel.  I'm about 30% in and really enjoying it.  So far no time travel though.  The way time works in this series anything is possible.  It follows a boy who is a clock mechanic, but he can also sense the threads of time.  All is not well with time, and the people don't exactly love the clock mechanics.  Its an interesting story.
• One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake
• I really enjoyed the first book and I'm axious to see what happens with the sisters in the next installment.
• Every Little Thing by Samantha Young
• Sam is another favorite author.  This is a contemporary series set in a quaint town and centers around an inn in the town and the people who live there.
• Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
• Another reading challenge book that has had nothing but praise.  I just downloaded it today and it is next up.

Review: Moonlight Sins by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Moonlight Sins by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was more of a thriller/mystery than it was a paranormal. I was hoping there was going to be more to the paranormal element as the plot progressed but the paranormal does not take center stage. As the story progresses it turns into a suspenseful thriller type novel. I might add that it is full of steamy romance between the two main characters Lucian and Julia. True to Jennifer L. Armentrout fashion, the book is filled with good banter between the characters and alot of steam.

Julia is a nurse, and has taken an in-home care job near New Orleans. She doesn't know much about her new charge, and the family is very secretive. She has an amazing one night stand with the gorgeous man she meets at her going away party the night before she leaves. She quickly finds out why there was so much secrecy surrounding her new job, she is to care for one of the de Vincent children. The de Vincent family are one of the wealthiest families to ever exist, and their house is apparently haunted and their family cursed. Madeline, Julia's charge, has been missing for 10 years and has recently reappeared. While she is physically fine, she is mentally unable to perform basic tasks like eating, speaking, and walking. Her brothers hired Julia to assist with Madeline's care. Julia shows up at the de Vincent estate and is overwhelmed by the opulence of the grounds and house. She is also quite taken aback when she meets her new employers, one of which is the man she thought she'd never see again, her stranger from the evening before none other than Lucian de Vincent.

The de Vincent brothers are known for their escapades and for getting into trouble. Devlin is the oldest and most business focused, Gabe is the nice one, and Lucian is the youngest and Madeline's twin. Lucian says what he thinks and pretty much everything he thinks is inappropriate. He is also known for being a playboy. After their evening together, which Lucian used to scope out Julia as the caretaker for his sister, Julia feels uncomfortable taking the job. He convinces her to stay, but the sparks continue to fly between them. Gabe also makes his attraction to Julia known, but he backs off once he realizes that Lucian might actually have feelings for her.

While Julia is taking care of Madeline and trying to get her to break out of her own mind, the brothers have other things to worry about. Before Julia arrived, they found their father had committed suicide which was totally out of character. The local police find that that suicide what more like homicide and open an investigation. There is alot of suspicious stuff that happens at the de Vincent house. You are never sure what's going on, is it the curse, the ghosts, one of the brothers, or something else entirely. I really liked how the plot was handled.

I've already preordered the 2nd book in the series which is about Gabe. We got to know him a little in book 1, but I'm looking forward to getting to know him in book 2. I really enjoyed this and can't wait to read the rest of the series.

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Review: Winter Glass by Lexa Hillyer

Winter Glass by Lexa Hillyer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review.  This book will be released on April 10, 2018.

This picks up almost exactly where Spindle Fire leaves off. Much like with Spindle Fire there is alot going on in Winter Glass. There is almost too much to keep track of. This isn't just a Sleeping Beauty reimagining, there are bits of Cinderella and other fairy tale inspiration thrown in. I also needed a family tree to keep track of all of the characters. There were way to many perspectives in this book. Any time there are more than two perspectives in a book, I tend to lost track of what is going on and that definitely happened here. We get the perspective of the two main characters, sisters Aurora and Isabelle, several of the fae, and a few side characters. I felt like the side characters and fae didn't give us enough to be significant, but the material was relevant. I'm not sure how the information could have been delivered in a different way, but I didn't like the execution.

This book has a slower pace considering the decent amount of action going on. The war is underway, Isabelle and William are fighting from different angles and Malfluer is determined to take over. Aurora is fighting her own war to save the people she found in the alternate world of Sommeil, who are now in her world after Malfluer has taken down Belcour. (see what I mean about alot going on) Aurora teams up with Wren and the other survivors to fight Malfluer, but she gets captured and makes a bargain with the fae queen. Meanwhile, Isabelle is gathering soldiers to their cause and trying to find a way to protect her kingdom. She happens upon a glass slipper that might be the answers to all of their problem, but what she finds isn't what she was expecting. It turns out the slipper is made of Winter Glass, which isn't what it appears. I hesitate to say more without spoiling the book.

Overall, the book is entertaining. There is character growth, action, magic, and some romance. If you like fantasy and retellings I'd give this series a go.

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Review: Meet Cute: Some People Are Destined to Meet

Meet Cute: Some People Are Destined to Meet by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was cute overall, I loved some of the stories and some were just OK. Some were really sweet, while some felt incomplete. There were a broad range of types of short stories in this bind up and I was exposed to some new authors.  I've put really brief descriptions below with my rating of each short story below.

• Siege Etiquette by Katie Cotugno - 2 Stars
• This didn't feel complete to me.  It was really about the meeting of the couple, but I didn't like the characters.  It has that hate to love feel while the characters are at a party.  I didn't really enjoy this one.
• Print Shop by Nina Lacour - 3 Stars
• This one was cute.  It centers around an intern at an old school print shop.  She attempts to bring them into the current century by creating social media accounts for them.  She has to deal with an upset customer, which leads to their meet cute.  This is a female female romance.
• Hourglass by Ibi Zoboi - 3 Stars
• The meet cute is basically the last thing that happens in this story, but the story itself is fine.  The main character has to deal with self-acceptance, racism, high school drama, and family drama.  
• Click by Katherine McGee - 4 stars
• This felt like a complete story, which was impressive give it was only about 20 pages.  The two main characters are on what they think is their perfect "click" date set up by a dating app.  They end up spending the evening chasing after her phone and have a great time.
• The Intern by Sara Shepard - 2 stars
• The intern has to show the celebrity around the city.  They hit it off.  It wasn't anything extraordinary.  She is sad, he is lonely.  They have a nice time on their date.
• Somewhere That's Green by Meredith Russo - 3 stars
• This one was pretty good.  It has a transgender main character who is dealing with some very relevant high school issues like which bathroom and locker room to use.  The other main character who is also very religious and a closet lesbian is part of the petition to keep gender norms as they are.  I like how the reveals and conversations were handled.
• The Way We Love Here by Dhonielle Clayton - 3 stars
• This was one of my favorites.  It has a sci-fi feel to it.  The people on the island have love bands on their ring fingers to signify that they've found their soulmate.  The main characters randomly find each other and end up trying to see the future.
• Oomph by Emery Lord - 4 Stars
• This was another possible female female meet cute.  Two girls meet at an airport and strike up a conversation in the security line.  They find each other at the gate and continue to talk.  The conversation is completely natural and I really liked their story.
• The Dictionary of You and Me by Jennifery L. Armentrout - 3 Stars
• I love JLA, and I really liked the premise of this book.  A young librarian is dillegently tring to get a patron to return a long overdue dictionary by calling and talking to the patron.  Instead of a quick reminder, they have conversations and have gotten to know each other.  She eventually figures out who the patron and the story progresses from there.  
• The Unlikely Likelihood of Falling in Love by Jocelyn Davies - 3 Stars
• THis was another good one, it really appealed to my inner math nerd.  The main character is working on a statistics project and she is trying to figure out the likelyhood of seeing a handsome boy on the passing train on her way to school.  It was witty and funny, and I liked that they actually got to meet at the end.
• 259 Million Miles by Kass Morgan - 2 stars
•  I didn't really care for this one.  The main character thinks he is being interviewed for a chance to go to Mars, but he is mislead.  He's only helping the girl in the story get there.  Atleast she helps him get over his insecurities.  The couple was actually decent, they complemented each other nicely, but in the end it was kind of sad.
• Something Real by Julie Murphy - 3 stars
• This unexpectedly turned out to be a female female meet cute.  This is about a reality TV show where the two competitors are trying to win a date with a celebrity.  The two girls end up getting to know each other while getting ready for the show and 
• Say Everything by Huntley Fitzpatrick- 2 Stars
• This one was kind of strange.  The characters don't really play off one another nicely.  She is a waitress and he's popular.  He asks her out, but we find out he has an ulterior motive and he's trying to make up for something.  The reveal is awkward as are their interactions.  
• The Department of Dead Love by Nicola Yoon - 3 Stars
• This was a unique story, probably the most unique of the bunch.  Each type of love has its own office, and the main character goes to the Department of Dead Love for a do-over.  He wants to find out why his love failed and wants a chance to repeat it and get it right, what he finds isn't what he was expecting.  This one was pretty good.

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Review: Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History by Ben Mezrich

Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History by Ben Mezrich
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I picked this up for a reading challenge for a book involving a heist, though it could also fill the true crime heist. This is a non-fiction book, thought it is as the title suggests so audacious that it reads like fiction. It is hard to tell how much of the story is true and how much is poetic license. It has the feel that it is inspired by true events, but it definitely feels more like fiction than truth.

Thad Roberts, the main character, has a very conservative Mormon background. However, he has big dreams and those dreams lead to NASA. Thad rebels against his upbringing, and finds himself cast out of his family home, married at a young age, but with big dreams he won’t be stopped. He is determined to make it to NASA and hopefully someday to space. He is a persistent person, and portrayed with child-like tendencies as if he had no real understanding of consequences. Even after he was arrested for stealing the safe containing millions of dollars of moon rocks he never expected to be punished. His actions throughout the book were all selfish and self-serving. He was always angling to get to the top of the food-chain and make a name for himself. His motivations are success and love. It is hard to tell if the real Thad is truly like this or if the story just makes him out to be this way. He is doing everything for his lady love Rebecca (not her real name), whom he apparently wrote letters to during his time in jail. The letters are sprinkled throughout the book. They met, had a whirlwind relationship, and claimed he stole the rocks for her. He also took all the blame for her and his other accomplice. If you read the book, you will know that he had already put the plan in motion before he met her. The whole heist is ridiculous, but you just kind of have to keep reading/listening to know what happens in the end.

I listened to the audio book, which is fairly short and read by Casey Affleck. The narration is good and it has the feeling of listening to a movie. This book isn’t great, but it isn’t terrible either. It just just OK as my rating suggests. The characters are pretty unlikable, and the whole plot/true story if you can call it that just feels so unrealistic even if it is based in fact.


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