Review: The Last Encore by Elodie Colliard

The Last Encore by Elodie Colliard
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

ARGH.

I really hate to write reviews about books I did not enjoy but I really have to because I promised Netgalley that I would. Here we go:

This is about Avery and Josh who were best friends in high school and then something happened and then they got separated and Josh left to Europe and Audrey stayed in Canada being sad.

The thing is that there wasn't any plot to it, most of the book was just Avery SAYING things. Her talking about how she and Josh were best friends but never like any indications of their friendship except her SAYING they were, and then Avery talking about her clothes and her body and her cat but never really anything going on.

I also kind of hated the ++++TRIGGER WARNING ALERT FOR SENSITIIVE CONTENT++++ use of a sexual assault in the book context. I really felt like it was there just for dramatic purposes. Like I know it's an important topic but to me it just felt like it was written for there to be an acceptable enough reason for things to fall apart like that. I don't know.

And in the end I just really felt like the book kind of was a little too fanfic? Anyway, try it for yourself and like always, don't let me be in the way of you and the books you are excited about.

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Review: Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh

Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Let me just start this review saying I FREAKING LOVED THIS BOOK.

Honestly, so much about this Holiday season is already off the charts and that makes me so happy. I've read Catherine Walsh before (One Night Only) and really liked her, so I knew that I had to give a Christmas book by her a chance and boy was I right! Holiday Romance hit all the right marks:
---absolutely adorable main hero with an artistic vibe and a huge Christmas obsession = check
---hilarious clueless heroine with a maniac thirst for a challenge = check
---a long time friendship that splayed out 10 years of 10-hour flights to Ireland = check
---gorgeous European and American scenary (even if it was just airports some times, but also PARIS) = check
---entertaining and fun side characters that made me want an entire book about them = check
---a slow burn romance that was also SO MATURE AND REALISTIC AND OMG I LOVE THEMM MOLLY & ANDREW 4EVA = check

So this all accounts for a very VERY happy Melannie who is ready to turn on all the Christimas lights I find and watch my energy bill shoot through the roofs just for a temporary pleasure because I AM THAT HAPPY YOU GUYS.

BYE.

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Review: When In Rome by Sarah Adams 😘 🥧 🎤

When in Rome by Sarah Adams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When In Rome
Amelia Rose is a famous popstar who has had it with her never-ending pleasing personality and just wants a break, in the form of a trip to Rome. But since she can’t leave the country (big tour coming! Tickets available) she goes to Rome, Kentucky instead.

Rome, Kentucky is where Noah Walker is at. You ask who this person is? Well, then, he is this grumpy young man who is emotionally unavailable since he got his heartbroken so now spends his days manning the family Pie Shop and keeping a careful eye on his sisters and grandma.

This is a romance, guys. And romance we get. It’s a quick fall, but an enjoyable one nonetheless. I mean yeah the way everything unfolds to get Amelia and Noah together is highly unrealistic and sometimes borderline dumb but I ate it up because who wants reality anyway? Give me a hard and fast falling in love hallmark channel style any day over the reality in cnn.

Anyway, I truly can say that I had a wonderful time reading this and can’t wait to dig into the stories of Noah’s sisters (which I am sure are coming, there were many hints) so if you need me I’ll be lining up over here waiting.

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Review: Ride With Me 🚗 by Lucy Keating

Ride With Me by Lucy Keating
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was so excited to dig into Ride With Me, I mean I’ve always thought being a taxi driver (or rideshare app driver) was such a cool way to meet people and get to listen to interesting stories about them so I was more than up to the task of reading about Charlie’s adventures. And I really liked her, she is a total artist yet she is definitely the quiet, introverted type that would much rather ride in silence (insert dead emoji here because I did not expect that) thankfully for me (and sadly for her) she ends up responsible for a minor car crash that gets her stuck with a constant passenger.

Enter Andre, the towns party-boy and overall much-loved extroverted person who sends Charlie’s nerves on fire. So while these two learn to walk in each other’s shoes we are treated to an all around wholesome and entertaining ride of self discovery and first love.

What else can you ask for in a summer novel, amirite?

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Long Story Short by Serena Kaylor

Long Story Short by Serena Kaylor
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Long Story Short

I was in the mood for a cute, summer read that didn’t take too long and would provide a good time; and Long Story Short seemed like the answer to my prayer.

I didn’t really know much about it going in, so I was surprised to find out just how much of a socially awkward person Beatrice really was. I mean I knew she was supposed to be a genius, and that usually comes with certain social difficulties but Breatice was on another level of inadequate, which was sort of painful to witness.

The rest if the cast were fun, though. But a little forgettable in my opinion. The whole story dragged on for a while which interfere with my plans of a quick read. Mostly due to the second hand embarrassment and the fact that I found everyone’s actions a little childish(?) even though it’s young adult it shouldn’t necessarily mean immature, right?

But there were also a bunch of fun parts that were enough to keep me going and at the end I liked it enough to finish it, even if it took me a long time.

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It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey

It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

How come no one told me the hero in this is basically living my Deadliest Catch dreams? *insert nerd noises of me watching Discovery Channel and screaming at the guys that a wave is coming* Honestly, if I had known that about this book it would have bumped up in my TBR a long ago. As it is, I had a tough time picking it up only because I don't have the most stellar relationship with Tessa Bailey but damn if I was going to skip this one after all the hype.

I am glad I didn't skip it because I thoroughly and utterly enjoyed it. It's a story about this completely shameless, but entirely endearing Heiress named Piper Bellinger (which c'mon, I mean I grew up pumping up Paris Hilton since her early days, I am never one to put down this so called "airheads") and this tough-as-nails boat Captain, king crab catcher extraordinaire Brendan Taggart. This is already appealing enough, isn't it?

But wait until you dive in and find that it's hilarious and full of growth and a hero/heroine combo that actually TRY TO BE UNDERSTANDING AND MATURE and I just find that so APPEALING. It was romantic as hell to watch both Piper and Brendan be mature about what the other might be going through without jumping into conclusions and also like, trying to put themselves in each others shoes: THAT'S WHAT I LIKE, AUTHORS; GIMME MORE PLEASE, THANKS.

So basically, me and Tessa Bailey are restored now. I can see our relationship growing steady in the near future. I can't wait for the companion novel to this one actually.



*Note about the sex--> goodness gracious, there is a lot of sex in this, so be prepared (to either read it, or read it through your fingers covering your face, or skip it, whatever is your thing :)

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