"I love you, Trace. I always have. Just remember that, okay? Hold on to it. No matter what I say or what I do... and trust me, I'll do some terrible things. Just know. I love you. With every fiber of my being."
Review:
Holy freaking cow. This story is amazing! Rachel Van Dyken's book, Elite, has exceeded my expectations. I love bad boys. And If they are freaking hot? Even more. And Ms. Dyken created an incredible story with an amazing plot, the perfect mixture of mystery, confusion, romance and college life, with bad cocky hot boys... everywhere! I must say, I felt like reading the teenage life of The Godfather. To not bring all my emotions in one paragraph and not make any spoiler, I would start for the beginning. Saying that I felt ridiculously confused at the beginning of the story is not even close to the level of confusion my mind was getting at. Nothing made sense and I wanted to slap every single boy at the Elite. Yes, Book Addicts, even Nixon and Chase. It was infuriating how they all made Tracey think she was part of the group, mafia style, all controlling, all "I'm-doing-this-for-your-own-good", and then they would humiliate her in public, to almost feel embarrassing to read, and break her heart. Like I said: infuriating, frustrating... to a I-want-to-kill-them-all level. What about the main character? Tracey is kind of brave. Why kind of? Because she replied back when Nixon talks, when no one has ever replied back to the leader of the Elite, she touches him when he says not to and she defies him even when the cleverest thing to do, is to just shut up and forget about them. Despite this, Tracey was kind of naïve, too. I meant... seriously? It was kind of obvious that something wasn't right with this hot (even more hot than the guys from Abercrombie) boys who owned the school in every possible way.
"Um I have a lot of homework and-" "-Nope, you're going. Nixon said you could." "Oh well, if the great and powerful OZ said I could go..." Monroe threw her head back and laughed. "Can we please call him OZ from now on?"
Monroe is the perfect friend. She happens to be Satan's sister aka Nixon's sister. Yep, I laugh a lot with that or when Tracey called him "the great OZ" and Monroe laughs and remarks how much Nixon would love to hear that. They have the perfect relationship because Monroe is just a teenage girl, anxious to have a girlfriend to talk to, go to parties and to exchange clothes. I like how she's loyal to her friend because she knows how Nixon really is. They are the sun and the moon. So it's the perfect balance for Tracey: Monroe, her sweet, cute, gorgeous and perfect friend, and Nixon, the evil impersonated, being the sheriff, judge and jury of Elite, with a strange fixation for Tracey and an undeniable physical attraction for the Farm Girl.
"So, does that make you and Nixon a year apart?" "No." Monroe flashed me a smile. "That makes us twins." "I'm sorry." "Oh, me too." We had reached the top floor again. Monroe took my bag. "Let's go, New Girl. People to see and boys to flirt with."
And Chase? Mmm... He's a jackass at first. He won my heart when he did a lovely thing for Tracey, but won also my hatred when he helped Phoenix do a prank to Tracey, a huge, humiliating, "swallow-me-Earth level of prank. However, almost at the end of book, we get to know a different Chase. A free Chase who likes Tracey for who she is and would protect her from anything because she's his friend. I loved how he protected her when Nixon didn't, when he chose another thing (not wanting to do a massive spoiler here) over her. He was there all the time and, I have to say, I see it coming what happened. And Nixon deserves it. I'm not gonna feel bad for him. The characters are perfectly created. I liked how the characters evolve, not sticking with the first impression you have of all of them. About the plot... just, wow. I'm beyond impressed. It's like Rachel Van Dyken took all the good things about New Adult and Romance stories and mixed up all together to create this wonderful story. It has, like I said before, the whole Godfather style, threatening people, going all sheriff around school, but with a college style. I kept asking myself how the teachers allowed the Elite behavior. Then there's a lot of romance and drama. Because without romance and drama this book won't be the same. Then there's a love triangle?! A few bad guys, with the promise of more evil, scary bad guys on time for the second book and the whole mystery going on during the entire story. I know. The perfect story to read. Yes, Book Addicts, you must read this story. But not only because of that, but because the level of romance going on through those pages makes my heart ache for more of this type of relationship and wants to re-read the book until I wear out the pages (If that's possible, because we are talking about a digital copy here!). And If you are not a hundred percent sure of the kind of love I'm talking about, here's an example:
"Need." He croaked. "I need you like I need my heart to pump blood through my body, like I need air to breathe, like we need gravity. Hell, Trace, you are my gravity. Being with you makes me feel centered and whole, and I'm too screwed up to convince you to want any different. I'm too selfish to push you into someone else's arms when I know mine may be the worst ones for you to be in."
I cannot keep talking about this book because I would give away some huge spoiler here, so I'm ending my review. But... Can you understand now why I'm in love with this story? And the boys? So, yes, Book Addicts. You do need to read this book. And yes, you do need to read more of Rachel Van Dyken's stories, because I can assure that it would rock your world. And because Elite rocked my world, I'm giving this book a five gorjuss dolls and the highly recommendation of reading, right away, this book. However there's one final decision to make... #TeamChase or #TeamNixon, Book Addicts? After doing the Dream Cast, I'm having more trouble deciding (I was in trouble, before, but now a little bit more). Read the book and let us know which team are you!
Dream Cast:
[image]
Jordan Legault as Nixon Gabriella Wilde as Tracey Mario Ermito as Chace...more
Tempting Tatum is one of those sweet stories with a clear happy ending at the end of the book. With the sweetness and swoon that only Kaylee Ryan can bring to a story, I found myself enamored with Blaise and wanting to know if Tatum would ever open up again.
Tatum Thompson had it all until she loses everything and finds herself broken, hurt and alone. With only her best friend to support her, she finds herself moving with her and her best friend's boyfriend to a new town to make a new start. Meeting Blaise is what turns Tatum's world upside down once again. With a clear attraction to the sexy, tattooed guy who keeps devouring her with his eyes, she finds herself trying to resist the pull 'cause an Adonis like him would never be interested in a relationship with her. However, Tatum believes that he has found his other half and he's willing to show that girl with green eyes that he's willing to make her fall in love with him and that he's not going anywhere.
Is hard to picture an idilic relationship and more when the two characters fall in love as quickly as in this story. They have an attraction, one of them is lucky to recognize it with some external help and the other is hurt from her past and not willing to open up, even less to something as scary as a new relationship. However, Tempting Tatum is one of those stories that swoons the reader to a level that you wish for that idilic love and gets a goofy and dreamy smile from the reader.
I felt like a lucky spectator reading from Blaise and Tatum's point of view their love story: how the meet, their impressions and where they finally arrived to the climax of their relationship. It's obvious the chemistry between the two characters, sizzling, and the sexual tension was there from the very first time. On the other hand, their flirting jumped from hot (that fireworks are about to explode) to kind of innocent and sweet. I think that the author did a great job with these two combinations and that is what makes this relationship so adorable and explosive at the same time.
Tempting Tatum is filled with drama, romance, loss, new beginnings, betrayal, finding a new home, heartbreak, trust and finding a reason to keep going even when everything is darker than usual. I found this new story written by Ms. Ryan, refreshing and as a much needed overdose of swoon, sweet, passionate and hot romance. I just love how, in every story, the author makes us believe that happy endings are still possible. At least in her stories. That's why I highly recommend this book to those romantics out there.
Merged review:
We are The Unofficial Addiction Book Fan Club, to know more about this book, go to the post in our website:
Tempting Tatum is one of those sweet stories with a clear happy ending at the end of the book. With the sweetness and swoon that only Kaylee Ryan can bring to a story, I found myself enamored with Blaise and wanting to know if Tatum would ever open up again.
Tatum Thompson had it all until she loses everything and finds herself broken, hurt and alone. With only her best friend to support her, she finds herself moving with her and her best friend's boyfriend to a new town to make a new start. Meeting Blaise is what turns Tatum's world upside down once again. With a clear attraction to the sexy, tattooed guy who keeps devouring her with his eyes, she finds herself trying to resist the pull 'cause an Adonis like him would never be interested in a relationship with her. However, Tatum believes that he has found his other half and he's willing to show that girl with green eyes that he's willing to make her fall in love with him and that he's not going anywhere.
Is hard to picture an idilic relationship and more when the two characters fall in love as quickly as in this story. They have an attraction, one of them is lucky to recognize it with some external help and the other is hurt from her past and not willing to open up, even less to something as scary as a new relationship. However, Tempting Tatum is one of those stories that swoons the reader to a level that you wish for that idilic love and gets a goofy and dreamy smile from the reader.
I felt like a lucky spectator reading from Blaise and Tatum's point of view their love story: how the meet, their impressions and where they finally arrived to the climax of their relationship. It's obvious the chemistry between the two characters, sizzling, and the sexual tension was there from the very first time. On the other hand, their flirting jumped from hot (that fireworks are about to explode) to kind of innocent and sweet. I think that the author did a great job with these two combinations and that is what makes this relationship so adorable and explosive at the same time.
Tempting Tatum is filled with drama, romance, loss, new beginnings, betrayal, finding a new home, heartbreak, trust and finding a reason to keep going even when everything is darker than usual. I found this new story written by Ms. Ryan, refreshing and as a much needed overdose of swoon, sweet, passionate and hot romance. I just love how, in every story, the author makes us believe that happy endings are still possible. At least in her stories. That's why I highly recommend this book to those romantics out there....more
As all our favourite bully romances, the book starts with the Royals of Kingsworth: Dash, Esra, and Bellamy - entitled rich kids - who meet our MC on As all our favourite bully romances, the book starts with the Royals of Kingsworth: Dash, Esra, and Bellamy - entitled rich kids - who meet our MC on an unfortunate night when one of them was propositioning her sister despite her saying no. Grace, our MC, posts their absolute entitlement on social media going viral overnight and, as you can imagine, this didn't go well with the Kings.
Through some blackmail, they end up making Grace attend their school where their revenge starts. However, things turn dark pretty quickly.
Overall, the book was enjoyable and definitely picked my interest to want to continue the series. However, I found some topics (especially towards the end) thrown into the story quite abruptly instead of getting them as a natural build-up. So the cliffhanger left me confused - instead of just being shocked or getting the "aha! I knew it" feeling.
I did like that the three guys are portrayed as antiheroes and the main character does not excuse their behaviour just because "they are good-looking and rich". I also saw a lot of chemistry going around between all four of them and the different contrasts between their personalities.
I do love it when an MC is outspoken and strong and I think it's quite clear from the beginning that Grace fits the mold.
Aside from the plot getting a bit choppy/all over the place towards the end, I truly enjoyed this RH bully romance and I can't wait to read the next books in the series!...more
I said this with her first series and I keep saying it. R.A. Smyth keeps delivering the best RH romances out there. If you are reading my review I hopeI said this with her first series and I keep saying it. R.A. Smyth keeps delivering the best RH romances out there. If you are reading my review I hope you have already read books 1 & 2, before landing here. It's not doubt that the Black Creek series has a strong, independent MC who makes the whole story explosive and interesting. I definitely wasn't expecting to get the ending from Book 2, but this was the perfect twist to get more time with the boys from both sides of the gang war. I really liked the fact that Enzo and Dante are so intense (aka possessive to no end) and that Oliver and Cain are portrayed a bit more easy-going BUT with also the same characteristics as the other 2 rivals. One would say, that the 4 of them could get along fine if it wasn't for the whole mess they have going on. The only thing that really annoyed me (nothing to do with how the book was written) was Oliver. Like I am sorry, I understand you "found" someone from your past, BUT now all of a sudden we are questioning our future?! Oliver... you were my favourite and now I am truly disappointed. That's all I'm saying. Overall, the story flows perfectly throughout the 3 installments. The relationships grow and change and there's a defined "bad guy" and "purpose" for the whole story. I know a lot of people are concerned that sometimes RH romances are only focused on the romance, but the plot and twists in this series is really good and worth spending the time reading. Damaged & Deadly should be representative of how I was left at the end of the book when I was left wanting more. I can't wait to get my hands on Book 4 and anything that R.A. Smyth is working on in the future! I definitely recommend the series for anyone looking for a mafia RH romance with a borderline enemies-to-lovers aspect. I have received an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This review has in no way been impacted by this....more
HATE YOU FOREVER is the first book I read by Denver Rose, but after finishing and leaving me on that major cliffhanger, I am definitely reading more oHATE YOU FOREVER is the first book I read by Denver Rose, but after finishing and leaving me on that major cliffhanger, I am definitely reading more of her books.
Our story starts with Tara and her family restaurant on the brink of being taken away from her. She has been working hard to make her family proud, and being independent, but the restaurant is struggling. Marnix, one of our boys we will swoon over and want to slap from time to time, is a rich lawyer from the other side of town. He overhears a conversation Tara is having on the phone with her parents while eating at her restaurant that will trigger the events in the story. After meeting Tara, the attraction is undeniable even though Tara is not falling head over heels for him as women normally do. That's also when he learns that in order to inherit the company his father left him, he needs to be married within 3 years and it has to be for at least 1 year before the company is legally his. Otherwise the company goes to his father's partner (who we hate, cause he is a horrible person). That's when Marnix or Nix, decides to marry Tara and when Tara meets Rush and Reilly. One becomes her bodyguard and confidant, the other turns out to be a lover Tara had prior meeting Nix.
The chemistry, the sexual tension, banter and arguments between the characters is everything you need in a love-hate reverse harem story. I am not going to lie and say I did not find myself not wanting to shake Nix until he stopped being an idiot, but the story process was beautiful.
I didn't know how strong of a MC Tara is until we went deeper into the story. The more you read and you discover, the more you admire her and want to slap Marnix (maybe gently) for not seeing the right signs.
To add a little spice into the mix, we also get to read from different POVs. Which definitely helps to build the characters in your mind and why the do what they do. I personally find this aspect really important when we are reading a love-hate relationship.
As always, when things are looking like they might have a happy ending, a cliffhanger is thrown into the mix, the bad guy pops out with an "aha" and we are left devastated because why would you not protect and stop the hate towards our MC? But hey, hell breaks loose and I CANNOT WAIT to see what will happen next. I hope Nix gets put in his place for being an idiot with trust issues and the bad guy gets what he deserves. I hope book 2 is Tara raising from the ashes and serving some well deserved justice.
If you love love-hate relationships, I highly recommend this book. It has the extra added hotness that it's a reverse harem. The book does contain some dark themes, so please check the trigger warnings before starting it.
Trigger warnings: This book contains abuse, rape, drugs and violence. If these topics are not appropriate for you, I would recommend to check other titles. ...more
I am going to start saying the things I disliked about this series: the fact I need to wait 3 months for book 2. Now, onto the good stuff.
I am alwaysI am going to start saying the things I disliked about this series: the fact I need to wait 3 months for book 2. Now, onto the good stuff.
I am always a bit sceptical when starting murder/mystery romance books, because normally the plot is super obvious and you can see what's about to happen. Not a criticism at all, because sometimes, we just need that. Easy, murder/mystery romance novels. However, when I started this book, I was hoping it would have more "substance" to it. And oh boy, let me tell you Aly Beck did indeed understand the assignment. Let's just say I am still trying to understand why Magnolia was murdered and why hiding the identity of one of the characters.... I have a lot of whys to ask the author.
But I am getting ahead of myself. As a quick summary, the story follows Kaycee in her quest of finding her best friend's, Magnolia, killer. To do that, she gets transferred to East Point Prep where her two older siblings graduated from and the new school Magnolia was attending when she was murdered. From a series of emails that we get given throughout Book 1, we can read Magnolia's POV and her life, and also, as the story progresses, we start to see hidden clues on her emails to Kaycee. Based on those emails, Kaycee has her first batch of suspects: Twins Seger and Zeppelin West, siblings Chase and Ainsley Benoit and Carter Cunningham aka Cruel Carter. We also get introduced to "Tristan", Kaycee's best friend who met online playing videogames. The first few days in the school seem to be okay and seems like Kaycee is making friends with the group of suspects. However, after a party, her door gets painted grey with a red cross which means she's been "marked". From there onwards, the whole school is against her including her newfound group of friends and the bullying starts.
I liked the fact that the author gives us the chance to find the clues left by Magnolia. I loved that the deeper and deeper you go into the story, the more complicated and complex it gets and once you think you have understood what's going on, another thing is being thrown at you.
I like how Kaycee is a strong girl despite her disability and it doesn't let her define her. Actually I think I love her because of it. I like her personality and her character and i love whenever she wanders into her mind and her "allies" find it cute.
I did not appreciate that last chapter where everyone's loyalties get questioned aka "big cliff-hanger moment" and then the book stops. ALY WE NEED TO CHAT ABOUT PLAYING WITH OUR BOOKISH HEARTS.
Aside from that, I 100% recommend this book. It's perfect for those people looking for a mild spicy RH book, with some mystery and murder in it. My only advise is that the book does have some dark themes, and I think the author hinted that the whole murder plot may be linked to darker themes, so please check the trigger warnings before starting the book.
I also wanted to voice some stuff that may be considered spoilers, so if you don't want to read them now you is your time to leave.
WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
SERIOUSLY, STOP SCROLLING NOW.
OKAY, HERE WE GO.
(view spoiler)[For those of you okay having some spoilerish comments/feedback, I want to say how much i liked having Tristan as the unknown ally from the very start. I knew, like FELT IT IN MY BONES!, that he was going to turn out to be one of the boys, and I have my clear suspect. So if you read the book and want to share your suspect DM at whatmakespatri on IG. Another thing I liked was that from the very first kick in the private areas (lol), I knew Carter was going to be EVERYTHING but Cruel. I am not sure why i keep getting swayed into the dark side by bad boys. I have to confess that on the last chapter I did a tiny dance and couldn't stop smiling after seeing the change in Carter. That's all I needed to be okay until book 2. Also, I have a theory about the numbers on the victims names AND I am so confused with Piper's character. She is a bit mental, but I wonder how she fits in all of this. Moreover, I want to know Ainsley's secret and who Magnolia's lover was. I am having a girl guess and I think it's either one of the adults in the story OR Ainsley. There I said it.
If my rants don't make sense to you right now cause you are like me and love to read spoilers before you read the book, go read the book, come back and DM me on IG ;) (hide spoiler)]
This is an honest review. For transparency, an ARC was provided to me by Affinity Author Services, but the rating and review of the book has not been swayed in any shape of form by this. Thank you Aly Beck & AAS for providing me with the ARC....more
I should be familiar by now with the emotional wreck Caroline and Susanne always leave me in after finishing one of their books, but for some reason II should be familiar by now with the emotional wreck Caroline and Susanne always leave me in after finishing one of their books, but for some reason I was not expecting to reach a whole new level. I literally threw my kindle across the room when I reached the last chapter with "F*cking Shawn".
Don't get me wrong the book was good. The level of angst that Caroline and Susanne provide to readers is over the roof, to the point that at some point you want to go yourself to the Harlequin House, make Rick, Fox, Chase, JJ and Rogue sit down and act as a mediator while they talk about their "true feelings".
That said, even though there's a hole in my heart I feel this is my favourite book in the series. I feel like the previous books have been a build up and a chance for the characters to grow on us for this exact moment. There's drama (lot of that), there's romance, there's funny moments (excuse me while I have Tatum's guys order the Harlequin Crew to steal a giant squid lol) and there's a bunch of revelations. But more than that, the villain gets upgraded to super villain boss.
I love the more we go with this series, we get to see more of the characters and their layers. To understand that their relationship with Rogue is not perfect and sometimes not the healthiest but they would do anything for her.
Of course, the queens of cliffhangers left us with a massive turn in the story right at the very end (we were so close to a somewhat happy ending guys...) and now here I am empty and emotionless waiting for the next book because I need the boys to realise the truth and go save the day. I don't think my bookish heart can deal if we spend HALF A BOOK in the next instalment of them moping around while they believe some bullshit story (I have strong feelings about this guys...).
Anyway, I don't know if my ramblings make any sense since I started this book last night and finished it at 2am, BUT long story short, read this series and then message me. We can cry and be angry together. It will be epic.
Side note, I never thought I would be saying this, but I ACTUALLY FEEL LIKE CRYING FOR CHASE....more
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