Showing posts with label Simon & Schuster. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Simon & Schuster. Show all posts

This Could Be Forever by Ebony LaDelle


This Could Be Forever by Ebony LaDelle is the kind of love story that feels soft around the edges but grounded in something real. It’s sweet and romantic without trying too hard, and the connection between the two main characters, Deja and Raja, feels both instant and earned. From the moment they meet, you can sense something special is about to unfold, not just a romance, but a story about growth, purpose, and learning how to show up for someone else while still showing up for yourself.

Deja is focused on building a future in science and skincare, and Raja is chasing his dream of becoming a tattoo artist while carrying the weight of his parents’ expectations. Their worlds are very different, but they come together in a way that feels natural and full of warmth. I loved how LaDelle weaves in both Southern Black and Nepali culture, there’s care and authenticity in the way these identities are shown, and the story never feels like it’s explaining itself. It just invites you in.

What stood out most to me is how emotionally mature the relationship felt, especially for a young adult book. There’s a real sense of mutual respect and support between Deja and Raja. They ask hard questions, face real-life pressures, and still manage to hold space for each other’s dreams. Their romance moves quickly, but it works. The pacing mirrors that feeling of falling fast and hard for someone who just gets you.

This isn’t just a love story, it’s a celebration of culture, family, and the beauty of young people figuring out who they are. The supporting characters add so much heart and life to the story, and the community around them really grounds the relationship in something bigger than just two people falling in love. If you’re looking for a contemporary romance that’s full of heart and sincerity, this one is worth picking up. It’s hopeful, charming, and it left me smiling long after the last page.


Book Review: All or Nothing at All by Jennifer Probst



ALL OR NOTHING AT ALL
Billionaire Builders #3
Author: Jennifer Probst
Reading Level: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Released: July 25, 2017
Review Source: Gallery Books | Simon & Schuster

Tristan Pierce left the family business to carve out a life of his own, but never forgot his passionate affair with the much younger, inexperienced Sydney Green, or the hurtful break-up that tore him apart. When he’s forced to return home and face his past, will he be able to carve out a future, or will lies ruin his second chance at love?

Sydney Green loved Tristan her entire life, but when he left, he took not only her heart, but her trust with him. Now that they’re together again, it’s time they both face the biggest secret of all….


I seriously did not think Jennifer Probst could top Any Time, Any Place (my favorite in the Billionaire Builders Series) but she did.  I am constantly blown away by Jennifer's ability to completely capture me with her words.  She writes the best characters.

All or Nothing at All is book three in the Billionaire Builders series and it has become my new favorite.  I was so excited to get my hands on Tristian and Sydney's story.  We met them throughout the series and they really intrigued me from the start.  I knew their story would slay me.  This book was sexy, emotional, and angst filled.  In other words it was one of those books that stays with you, that leaves a mark.

Tristan is hands down my favorite brother.  It's so hard to say that because I love all the brothers but Tristan just takes it to another level.  Tristan and Sydney have history, a very complicated past.  This book is about second chances.  It can be read as a standolone but I highly recommend reading the whole series because it's bloody brilliant.

I am rating this book 4.5 stars because I loved this story so much and am so happy I got to visit their world again.  Definitely go one click this baby.

Coming April 2018: Love And Other Words by Christina Lauren



#1 international and New York Times bestselling author,  Christina Lauren announce the release of their first women’s fiction novel,  LOVE AND OTHER WORDS

New York, N.Y., September 18, 2017 –  Christina Lauren, author of the Beautiful series and Dating You/Hating You has announced, LOVE AND OTHER WORDS, their first women’s fiction novel. The book will be released on April 10, 2018 from Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.

Perfect for fans of JoJo Moyes and Taylor Jenkins Reid, LOVE AND OTHER WORDS tells the story of childhood sweethearts reuniting after a decade, with many unresolved questions and issues still wedged between them. 

Macy Sorensen is settling into an ambitious if emotionally tepid routine; work hard as a new pediatrics resident, plan her wedding to an older, financially secure man, keep her head down and heart tucked away.

But when she runs into Elliot Petropoulos – the first and only love of her life – the careful bubble she’s constructed begins to dissolve. Once upon a time, Elliot was Macy’s entire world – growing from her gangly teen friend into the man who coaxed her heart open again after the loss of her mother…only to break it on the very night he declared his love for her. 

Told in alternating timeless between Then and Now, teenage Elliot and Macy grow from friends to much more – spending weekends and lazy summers together in a house outside of San Francisco reading books, sharing favorite words, growing pains, and triumphs. As adults, they have become strangers to one another until their chance reunion. Although their memories are obscured by the agony of what happened that night so many years ago, Elliot will come to understand the truth behind Macy’s decade-long silence, and will have to overcome the past and himself to revive her faith in the possibility of an all-consuming love. 

The heart may hide, but it never forgets…


Book Review: Dating You Hating You by Christina Lauren



DATING YOU HATING YOU
Author: Christina Lauren
Reading Level: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Released: June 6, 2017
Review Source: Simon & Schuster

All’s fair in love and work. The first standalone romance by New York Times and #1 international bestselling author Christina Lauren (Beautiful Bastard) is a sexy, compulsively readable romantic comedy that dives headlong into the thrill and doubt of modern love.

Despite the odds against them from an embarrassing meet-awkward at a mutual friend’s Halloween party, Carter and Evie immediately hit it off. Even the realization that they’re both high-powered agents at competing firms in Hollywood isn’t enough to squash the fire.

But when their two agencies merge—causing the pair to vie for the same position—all bets are off. What could have been a beautiful, blossoming romance turns into an all-out war of sabotage. Carter and Evie are both thirtysomething professionals—so why can’t they act like it?

Can Carter stop trying to please everyone and see how their mutual boss is really playing the game? Can Evie put aside her competitive nature long enough to figure out what she really wants in life? Can their actor clients just be something close to human? Whether these two Hollywood love/hatebirds get the storybook Hollywood ending or just a dramedy of epic proportions, you will get to enjoy Christina Lauren’s heartfelt, raucous, and hilarious romance style at its finest.

I love Christina Lauren. They are in my top favorite authors list. I've been a fan since fan fiction days.  Beautiful bastard is my second most reread book. I'm saying all of this because these authors are effin amazing. They know how to give me strong independent females that I love.

Dating you hating you gave me everything I wanted in a heroine. Evelyn "Evil" Abbey is  a powerhouse of a woman. She's an agent to some pretty big names in Hollywood. She absolutely kicks ass and takes names.  I love that she is so bad ass in her field and brings in even more money than the men to the firm she works for. She meets a really cute guy, Carter, at a her friends party who happens to also be an agent for a different firm. They have immediate chemistry. LOVE IT. Their banter is so cute in the beginning. Then they find it their firms are merging and basically fighting for the same job. All bets are off.  Carter is so freaking adorable. He doesn't have his emotions under control quite like "Evil" so he's a little bit more "fly off the handle".

I liked the love/hate sexual tension throughout the book. I just wish the book had a little bit more of the page burning, fanning yourself passion that I've experienced reading Christina Lauren in the past.

All in all I'm rating this book 4 stars because I really loved it and, let's be honest, I would read their grocery lists. I recommend all books by Christina Lauren and this one is no different. It was a fun, exciting, nail biting, towards the end, book that I couldn't put down.

Book Review: Buns by Alice Clayton



BUNS
Hudson Valley #3
Author: Alice Clayton
Reading Level: New Adult
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Released: May 23, 2017
Review Source: Simon & Schuster

Clara Morgan is living the dream, if you can call rebranding hotels that are desperate for a new life and running any kind of marathon a dream. Which she does. But the career she loves and the endurance races that keep her adrenaline pumping have kept her too busy to put down any roots. Growing up in foster care, she’s never been able to establish traditions of her own, which may be why she’s fascinated by the rituals that generations-old family resorts are known for. She’s especially interested in the Bryant Mountain House, and not just for their secret recipe for the yummy, gooey, can’t-get-enough-of Hot Cross Buns….

Archie Bryant, the man with the Buns, is fifth generation and one-day-owner of the charming yet run-down Bryant Mountain House in Bailey Falls, New York. He’s determined to save his family’s legacy from the wrecking ball the old-fashioned way—by gritting his teeth and doing what needs to be done. There’s no way Archie will be influenced by the new hotel branding expert his father brought in to turn one hundred and fifty years of tradition on its head just to attract a faster, younger, slicker crowd. But when some of Clara’s ideas start bringing in new, paying customers, Archie can’t deny that she may have just given him a shot at keeping his resort open.

It’s sticky, it’s messy, it’s sweet, it’s Buns.

This was such a fun read, as are all Alice Clayton books.  We are back in New York where Clara is brought in to completely update a luxury resort.  She is very much looking forward to making the hotel really shine when her almost boss, Archie, is not happy about all the changes to come.  The two are definitely at odds with each other but have an undeniable attraction going on.  Perfect set up for an amazing story!

I loved this book!  It has been my favorite book so far in the Hudson Valley series.  Which is saying a lot because I really loved the other books also.  Seriously Alice Clayton can do no wrong, I always enjoy every single one of her books.

I love Clara and Archie!  Clara is an amazing woman.  She is strong, talented, smart, and beautiful!  The total package!  I want to be her when I grow up.  Archie is set in his ways and traditions.  He's so stubborn that he reminds me of my husband.  I laughed out loud many times reading this book and seeing the banter between the two characters.

I am rating this book 4.5 stars because it was such a fun, romantic, story.  It kept me entertained the entire time and that's hard to do with my ADD.  I highly recommend this book and all of Alice Clayton's books!

Giveaway: The Complete Beautiful Series by Christina Lauren



Beautiful right? 

Here at Once Upon a Twilight we have all the feels!!! We are happy because Beautiful, the last book in the Beautiful series will be coming out (10/4/16), but sad because Beautiful will be the LAST book in the series. We have enjoyed every single moment since the beginning and we hate to see it end. 

What have been your favorite moments? I think we all can agree that the #1 moment for everyone is when we met the Beautiful Bastard himself in book one. Without him, I think the series wouldn't have connected like it did. 

To celebrate this special time, Gallery Books will give one lucky reader a complete set of the Beautiful Series (all 10 books). Pretty awesome right? Just enter the form below and stay tuned when the winner is chosen. 

Visit the Simon & Schuster Beautiful series page to get all the latest on the series:



Giveaway details:
Winner wins complete set of the Beautiful series (10 books).
Giveaway if for US residents only (sorry international readers).
Please reads giveaway policy here


Book Review: The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson



The Unexpected Everything
Author: Morgan Matson
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary
Released: May 3rd 2016
Review Source: Simon & Schuster

Andie had it all planned out.

When you are a politician’s daughter who’s pretty much raised yourself, you learn everything can be planned or spun, or both. Especially your future.

Important internship? Check.

Amazing friends? Check.

Guys? Check (as long as we’re talking no more than three weeks)

But that was before the scandal. Before having to be in the same house with her dad. Before walking an insane number of dogs. That was before Clark and those few months that might change her whole life.

Because here’s the thing - if everything's planned out, you can never find the unexpected.

And where’s the fun in that?

The Unexpected Everything was everything I expected from Morgan Matson, the perfect YA story. Sadly this is only my second read of Matson’s, it definitely won't be my last, a forever fan has been installed inside me. When I read Since You've Been Gone a couple of years ago I honestly cried when I finished, it was beautiful, perfect, and definitely helped me with my 1,700 mile move. So when I saw The Unexpected Everything was coming up I told all the girls here at OUaT that I called dibs (hopefully they didn't mind), I couldn't wait to get my greedy hands on it. Unfortunately when that beautiful book came into my possession I was in the WORST book rut ever and happened to be moving so I just looked at it forlornly until I was going to be ready and somewhat unpacked (I didn't want to feel guilty for sitting for hours at a time). Boxes are unpacked, book rut is a thing of the past, and I have The Unexpected Everything to thank for that.

Andie is a planner. She has her summer planned out, her future mapped out, amazing friends, and a dating system that works for her. What Andie doesn't have planned out are the repercussions from a scandal involving her father. So now the summer is beginning and Andie has no internship and no clue what she's going to do. After realizing there is literally nothing left for her to do in the realm of internships Andie searches for help wanted ads, while she finds a few they all end up leading to dead ends, but  it’s  a very nondescript ads that landed her walking dogs all summer. While not ideal or anything that’ll help further her dreams of becoming a doctor, she does meet a very cute boy along the way, Clark, whom I have swooned over SO much the entire time. This summer is going to challenging for Andie, different, her plans are out the window, she has a new job, her dad is always around, her friends are actually all together for the summer and then there’s Clark.

I seriously don’t think I can even scratch the surface with the amount of love and admiration I have for The Unexpected Everything. Let’s just start with everything beautiful inside, (obviously we know the cover is beautiful) first off the friendships, they’re solid and strong, but like everything solid and strong storms around bound to weather the foundation. The relationship and lack thereof with Andie and her father and them getting back to their roots where they don’t feel like they’re walking on eggshells around each other. Andie’s relationship with Clark, evolving her as person, getting her to read (to listen to books), opening her eyes. And then the dogs! Hello! Who doesn’t love dogs?! Alright, some people don’t, but c’mon at least they’re cute to look at (most of the times).

Morgan Matson creates these beautifully real stories that touch your heart. Bringing you back to summer and being a teen, falling in and out of love, fighting and making up and family dynamics that are hard to maneuver. Everything seems so real and you’re easily transported right there, walking the dogs with Andie, falling for Clark, building your relationship back with your dad, and having a blast with your friends. There will never be a time that I turn down reading a Matson book, Morgan is now forever an autobuy author.

Winners Have Been Chosen in the Star Trek Writing Contest!


Congratulations to the winners of the Star Trek Writing Contest!

We are excited to announce that from hundreds of submissions to the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Writing Contest, the following authors have been selected to be published in an upcoming Star Trek anthology! 

The 10 Grand Prize Winners are:

Neil Bryant - Dilithium Is a Girl's Best Friend

Gary Piserchio & Frank Tagader - A Christmas Qarol 

Kelli Fitzpatrick - The Sunwalkers

Chris Chaplin - The Seen and Unseen 

Michael Turner - The Façade of Fate 

Nancy Debretsion - The Manhunt Pool 

Derek Tyler Attico - The Dreamer and the Dream

Roger McCoy - The Last Refuge

John Coffren - Life Among the Post-Industrial Barbarians 

Kristen McQuinn - Upon the Brink of Remembrance 


The two First Prize winners, who will each receive a free publishing package from Archway Publishing, are: 

Kerry F. Booth | James Corrigan


This has been a thrilling quest to find the most powerful stories that span the Star Trek universe. 

Live long and prosper. 

Sincerely, 
The Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Contest Team 

Book Review: Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick + Giveaway




Dangerous Lies
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary/Thriller
Released: November 10 2015
Review Source: Simon & Schuster

A teen is forced to make a fresh start after witnessing a violent crime—but love and danger find her anyway in this novel from Becca Fitzpatrick, the New York Times bestselling author of the Hush, Hush saga.

Stella Gordon is not her real name. Thunder Basin, Nebraska, is not her real home. This is not her real life.

After witnessing a lethal crime, Stella Gordon is sent to the middle of nowhere for her own safety before she testifies against the man she saw kill her mother’s drug dealer.

But Stella was about to start her senior year with the boyfriend she loves. How can she be pulled away from the only life she knows and expected to start a new one in Nebraska? Stella chafes at her protection and is rude to everyone she meets. She’s not planning on staying long, so why be friendly? Then she meets Chet Falconer and it becomes harder to keep her guard up, even as her guilt about having to lie to him grows.

As Stella starts to feel safer, the real threat to her life increases—because her enemies are actually closer than she thinks…


Estella was a witness to a crime. Estella's life has now been uprooted as she's been placed in witness protection as she deals with testifying against one of the biggest men in the drug cartel ring. Adjusting to a new life she isn't familiar with, and learning to live with the lies she has to feed to those around her, isn't exactly how she wants to be spending her summer before she turns 18.

Becca Fitzpatrick has done it again. She has written a story that had me engrossed from the minute I picked it up. I admit that I feel a soft spot for Becca. When I first started reviewing for Once Upon A Twilight the first book I read that I thoroughly enjoyed was Black Ice by Becca. And since then I have read all of her books and I do love them all - so when I started Dangerous Lies I was worried that I wouldn't enjoy it, but I should've had faith and known that Becca would not let me down!

The premise of the story is great - I have a few qualms with how lenient she is about being in witness protection. I feel like there are certain things that happened in the book that a person really in witness protection would not have done. But who am I to judge - I've never been in witness protection so I can't say for sure if this is the case or not. I loved the fact that she was in witness protection though. For the character, it helped her grow. It forced her to let certain things go and it forced her to grow; she got to Thunder Basin and hated it, hated Carmina who took her in, hated everything. And slowly you see her grow, see her start to get attached. And it's nice to see Stella go from this person who has a hard exterior because of her hard past grow into a teenage girl with a sensitive side who allows people to get close to her.

Yet again Becca has written one of my favorite book boyfriends ever. Patch from her Hush, Hush series still holds my number 1 spot but Chet has now made it onto my top 10 at least. He's a gentleman while being resilient about certain things. He will do anything and everything to make sure that Stella is happy and protected. He understands that people have secrets, whether she can tell him things or not he's fine with that. As long as he gets to be with Stella, he's happy. He has his own tough life to deal with, but he is handling it and helping Stella to handle hers as well.
Every character, except clearly Danny and his men and Trigger, were so easy for me to love. I loved Inny and wish she had been in the story more than she was. She was the friend that Stella needed. From the inside thoughts to her previous friends that she had around, including her boyfriend Reed, I feel like Thunder Basin was a step-up. Of course Stella wasn't seeing it as that when she first got there because she felt ripped away from her life. She didn't want to start from scratch. But starting from scratch helped her to move on, sort things out, and get back on track with her life.

While reading this book I had a wonderful idea for Becca's next book - I really want her to write a story where the main character ends up being the bad guy. There were many times during this book that I almost thought Stella was going to twist into the person who no one would love. But because Becca is a great writer she had made me fall in love with the character of Stella and so I was torn up. But while feeling this way I realized how brilliant Becca was to do this.



Wow, Dangerous Lies had me like:


And like this too:


And I can't leave out:


But did I mention:


Yes that last one, you experience quite a bit during this book. Becca Fitzpatrick has outdone herself with this novel. My eyes were cemented to the pages from the beginning until the last word. I couldn't put it down, no matter how tired I was. I read it in the car, at my desk, in the shower and in bed. Everyone should read it, doesn't matter if your old, young, female or male. 

Dangerous Lies seals the fact that Fitzpatrick not only can she write paranormal stories but thrillers as well. You have to pick up your own copy to know what happens to Stella Gordon when she is forced into the Witness Protection Program. Lives will be changed forever in more ways that one. 




Since we loved Dangerous Lies so much, we want to share it with one reader. We are giving away an ARC copy of Dangerous Lies internationally. Enter below!

Book Review: The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch, Volume One: At the Edge of Empire by Daniel Kraus






At The Edge of Empire
The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch (Volume One)
Author: Daniel Kraus
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Released: October 27, 2015
Review Source: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

May 7, 1896. Dusk. A swaggering seventeen-year-old gangster named Zebulon Finch is gunned down on the shores of Lake Michigan. But after mere minutes in the void, he is mysteriously resurrected. His second life will be nothing like his first.

Zebulon's new existence begins as a sideshow attraction in a traveling medicine show. From there, he will be poked and prodded by a scientist obsessed with mastering the secrets of death. He will fight in the trenches of World War I. He will run from his nightmares—and from poverty—in Depression-era New York City. And he will become the companion of the most beautiful woman in Hollywood. Love, hate, hope, and horror—Zebulon finds them. But will he ever find redemption?

Ambitious and heartbreaking, The Death & Life of Zebulon Finch, Volume 1: At the Edge of Empire is the epic saga of what it means to be human in a world so often lacking in humanity.


I won't lie, I was a bit intimidated by this book. 642 pages can do that to someone. Luckily this book pulled me in straight away and kept me hooked the entire time! To say that was a relief is an understatement. You always want a big book to be good!

Zebulon, our narrator, is telling us his story. That is one of my favorite things about this book: the writing style Daniel Kraus went for. It definitely helps in keeping you interested. The characters each stood out on their own and in their own ways. Zeblon's character arc throughout the book was amazing. The book summary tells you that in itself, really. Zebulon's life is full of amazement and wonder with so many things that he goes through. You'll stay entertained!

There was SO MUCH content! Which is a great thing, don't get me wrong, but you have to keep up with it so it doesn't boggle your mind at times. I found myself kind of taking moments to rethink about what happened, but it didn't slow me down at all!

At the Edge of Empire is definitely something you should add to your book shelves. It's so different and amazing. Truly unlike anything I've ever read before and I can't wait for volume two!

Book News: Halloween Book Spooktacular from Simon & Schuster

Here is a great list of books perfect for those little ghouls and goblins brought to you by Simon & Schuster.



 

 

 


And for those not so little...

  

  

(click on any book cover for more information)

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