REVIEW. The Last Hour (Thompson Sisters) by Charles Sheehan-Miles

Warning: Grab some tissues, a bottle of vodka, buckle up and enjoy the ride!

Charles has done it again with The Last Hour. It was incredible, moving, powerful, emotional, heart breaking. I don't know how he does it, but every novel of his that I have read he manages to pull all kinds of emotions out of me and really make me feel my read. I love every second of it.

For those of you that have read Just Remember to Breathe you will remember Carrie and Ray, we were introduced to them briefly and I for one loved them. Carrie came across as the girl in her family to hold everybody together, to be there for everyone, to play the role as mother when their own was less than capable. And Ray? Ah he was just.. wonderful. We didn't know a lot about him but him and Carrie together? Beautiful. And I wanted to know more.
For those of you that haven't previously read any of Charles' Thompson Sister series, that's okay, you can still read The Last Hour without worrying about who the characters are. There is plenty of opportunity to get to know Carrie and Ray, as well as other members of Carrie's family.

The book quite literally starts off with a BANG - a car accident involving Ray, Carrie, and Carrie's two younger twin sisters Jessica and Sarah. What follows this event is some of the most heartwrenching, scary, emotional scenes I have ever read. Charles has the ability to make you feel as though you are there with them living all the good, the bad, and the ugly moments. By the end of the book I felt as though Carrie and the gang were my own friends, my own family and I'm sure they will all forever be a part of me.

"I'm waiting for you, soldier."

As well as the accident, Charles has expertly weaved in stories from the past. Carrie and Ray have only been together 9 months but in that time they have managed to do and go through so much. Ranging from Ray dealing with troubles that have followed him back from war to Carrie dealing with a jealous colleague who is set out to destroy all that she has worked so hard to achieve. Even going through all these issues, they have always had each other. "We'll get through it together" This sentence is regularly used throughout and it couldn't be more appropriate. They have one of the strongest relationships I've ever read about it and it is so obvious how much they love and care for each other.

"You can't call me babe anymore. It's Doctor Babe to you."

I'm not going to lie, this book was hard. Really freaking hard. From the blurb and comments Charles has recently made about this book you can guess it is going to be a lot different to the first two in the series and he wasn't lying. It is very different, but I'm also going to put it out there that this is the best book I've read by Charles, and easily one of my favourites this year. I love a book that can make me feel all the emotions of the characters and feel as if I am right there living their traumas with them and that is exactly what happened with The Last Hour.

"At that moment, looking in Ray's eyes, I was as happy as I've ever been in my life."

The Last Hour has a running theme centred around choices. From having the ability to make a choice, to having no say at all and dealing with the repercussions of that. And even going as far as having to make a choice that is ultimately the right one but will still destroy lives in the process. Decision making isn't an easy thing in life and this book goes to show that. Sometimes when you do have the ability to make that choice, it may just be the most courageous/heroic thing you could ever do.

"Sometimes you have to make choices, and they're imperfect, but they're the only choices you can make and live with yourself."

If I could, I would give The Last Hour 10 stars and more. It was incredible. Please, please, please go one-click it as soon as it's live, I guarantee you won't regret it. I know this book will stay with me forever and that is one sign of a truly amazing author.

REVIEW. Real by Katy Evans

You know you're not really feeling a book when you skim through the majority of it.

I came to this book straight after reading a different one that pretty much blew my mind. Everybody knows when you read an outstanding book, it's hard to find something just as great to follow. So, that may be the reason for me not liking this so much, or could be that the writing and story just didn't work for me. Maybe a mixture of all three.. I'm not sure.

Real has two main characters; Remington and Brooke. I kept on reading that Rem/Remy was so swoonworthy and that I'd fall head over in love with him. Well, um, I must have been reading about a different Remy because the Remy I met was nothing short of an a-hole. I am all for an alpha male who is bossy and possessive, that's great, but they have to at least have a likeable bone in their body. Remy just didn't seem to have that. He spoke awfully to Brooke at times, treated his team like dirt and was just generally a bit of a pig.

Brooke, she was okay. I didn't like her, I didn't dislike her, her presence in the book just didn't move me. Years before meeting Remy she had had her big Olympic dreams shattered, but she didn't let it consume her life. She moved on. Meeting Remy and becoming a part of his fighting team helped her to be a new Brooke.

"And I just don't know what I'm going to do, but I want to make him mine more than i've ever wanted anything. Even the Olympics."

Brooke and Remy's relationship. I didn't really believe in it at all. It started off slow and strictly as colleagues but you knew from the off that there was serious sexual tension there. I just didn't feel their relationship though, I know the book is called Real but nothing about their relationship felt real to me.

So really.. overall this wasn't that much of an enjoyable read for me. If it wasn't for my silly book OCD I would have dnf'ed this right near the beginning. Maybe it was just a case of reading it at the wrong time, or simply because I didn't like it, I'll never know.

GIVEAWAY! eBook copy of The Last Hour by Charles Sheehan-Miles

The Last Hour by Charles Sheehan-Miles

 

 Twenty-seven year old Carrie Thompson-Sherman has the life she always wanted: her PhD, a prestigious fellowship, and an amazing husband.
Her life begins to unravel as a jealous colleague puts her fellowship in jeopardy and a haunting secret Ray Sherman carried home from Afghanistan comes to light.
Hounded by a federal investigation and the ensuing media feeding frenzy, Carrie and Ray desperately lean on each other, until a disastrous accident puts both Ray and her sister's lives at risk.
In the last hour, Carrie and Ray will each find themselves faced with a choice.
A choice that will change everything.

I had the absolute pleasure of reading The Last Hour in the beta stages and I loved every single word of it. It is hands down Charles' best work. To celebrate my new blog I am going to do a giveaway for an eBook of it as soon as it is available. I will be gifting it from Smashwords so you get to choose either ePub or mobi. Just fill out the rafflecopter below.
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I will be posting my review sooner to the release date (which, at the moment is May 15th). 

REVIEW. Blind Obsession by Ella Frank

There are not nearly enough words in the world that I could use to do this book justice. 

Blind Obsession was unlike anything I have ever read. It was truly one of a kind. I find myself wanting to write out everything that happened, in every excruciating detail, just so I can make my point. But of course, I won't. You need to experience this book and I mean that in every sense of the word.

This book is what Ella has described as, interactive. As you are reading along you come to descriptions of a piece of art, or a piece of music and instead of having to imagine it, you are shown. There has been a website created for the sole purpose of enhancing our read. And I have to say, it was the most wonderful thing. I felt like I was right there throughout the whole thing. Up until reading this book I really couldn't care less for classical music, it just isn't my thing. Yet, every time a piece was mentioned, I found I had no choice but to go and listen to it. I wanted to have that feeling.

I really don't know how to start describing this book, apart from saying that you have to just read it to understand and appreciate it. Gemma Harris is a journalist from the US, taking a trip around the world to France to interview a man that was once a well known and respected artist, but now spends his days secluded in his chatuea, away from the world. Phillipe Tibideau. The point of this interview is to finally allow Phillipe to tell his side of the story. Explain to the world he isn't the monster they all paint him to be, instead he is a broken man living with grief and a crushing, all consuming guilt.

"Who is Phillipe Tibideau? Is he just a misunderstood sad artist who now hides himself away? Or is he something much darker than that?"

Nothing goes to plan from the minute Gemma steps foot inside Phillipe's sanctuary. Surrounding her are paintings from the famous Blind Vision Collection; portraits of Chantal, painted by the famous Phillipe. Over time feelings emerge, lines are crossed and suddenly there aren't just two people there, exploring his story, there are three. Instead of acting as the journalist that she is supposed to be, Gemma soon finds herself playing the role of Chantal. Sitting for hours on end whilst Phillipe recreates the collection that once meant so much to him, but ultimately caused him to lose everything.

"When did this story morph? When did it change from a tale of two to a tragedy of three?"

My heart broke over and over here for Gemma whilst reading because I just could not understand why she was willing to give herself over to a man who so obviously wasn't 'there' with her. He was living in a fantasy world, with a woman no longer in his grasp. Yet at the same time as feeling so utterly devastated for her, I had to remember.. she had a choice. She didn't have to be there, she didn't have to be submitting to his every request. She chose that path.

"I'm struck with the realization that I'm holding onto a man who, for now, is holding on to me but he still has not let go of her."

The whole book was beautiful and haunting. I read things I never thought I'd read. I hated, I loved, I loathed. I felt absolutely every emotion possible where these characters were concerned. I was frustrated with Phillipe's inability to let go of the past, I was so angry with Gemma for allowing herself to be treated in such a way and I was even mad at Chantal. But above all I was so incredibly connected to all three of these characters. I didn't necessarily start out understanding their actions but over time everything became clear. Absolutely everything clicked in to place.

"You've fucking destroyed me. First, she did, and now you are."

I really don't think there is much more I can say about the story without ruining everything, which I'd hate to do. I recommend this to absolutely everybody. I feel as though everybody should experience this truly remarkable book, just as I have. I am going to mention, there is no typical HAE here. But in saying that, I couldn't have been happier with the way things ended up. Yes, I was absolutely sobbing in the last 3/4 chapters but that was because everything was written so perfectly, and anything different would not have done the book justice. In my mind there could not have been another outcome. Even if it did break my heart in two.

This is not one of my finest reviews but I had to say something. I hope it at least persuades one person to go and buy it.

REVIEW. Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

My heart is hurting, my mind is confused and I'm struggling to deal with my feelings.

This book was the hardest book I have ever read, without a doubt. I come from a family of three kids, I have two older brothers. Sitting here, reading a book about incest just seemed wrong on so many levels. But at the same time everything about it just seemed so right.

Don't get me wrong, I don't agree with the themes of this book in the slightest but what you have to understand is Lochan and Maya aren't like a brother and sister. There is no sibling rivalry there, they don't argue and fight, they haven't grown up playing happy families. Their home life is horrendous. With only 13 months between them, a mother that is a drunk and a father half way across the world, Lochan and Maya are more like a couple, caring for their three younger siblings. They are juggling through going to school, taking exams, doing the food shop, bathing and feeding their siblings, going to parent/teacher consulations.

Their is nothing seedy like an 'insta-love' here, the author has done an absolutely incredible job of taking her time before introducing any kind of physical relationship. We get to know the family, we get to know the way they are with their siblings and more importantly we get to witness the unique relationship between Lochan and Maya. I want to say 'I can't blame them' but that seems just as wrong as agreeing with that they have done. How the hell do you rationalise your feelings over such a taboo subject?

"He was always so much more than just a brother. He is my soul mate, my fresh air, the reason I look forward to getting up every morning."

I think it's important for readers to know that eventually Lochan and Maya do move on to a physical relationship. It isn't for a long way through the book but it is there. Whilst I was reading I was feeling sick, feeling so awful that I was witnessing this but at the same time, it really was all so right. The author wrote the scenes beautifully and so perfectly. I think it was important for this scene to be included, regardless of how it all ended, and I don't think it could ever have been written any better.

"How can something so wrong, feel so right?

The ending absolutely broke me and tore me apart. Make no mistake, there is no happily ever after here and I knew that going in to the book. I was prepared for that, and I had my guesses to how it would end, but none of that made it okay or easier. It is absolutely heart breaking that it had to end that way but honestly, any other ending wouldn't have been right.

"It's so good it hurts. I think I'm going to die from happiness. I think I'm going to die from pain."

This book has really made me think and that doesn't usually happen when I read, unless the book is powerful enough and this was exactly that. Who are we, as a society, to decide what should be right and wrong in a relationship? Every single relationship is different with different circumstances and nobody knows what really goes on behind closed doors. I know this isn't right or normal but I've said it before and I'll say it again, Lochan and Maya were not like brother and sister and they never had been. It's so easy to understand and accept how they ended up in the situation they did.

I really did love this book and although I say I recommend it, you have to make sure you are really in the right frame of mind. It is a painfully difficult read and I won't be reading it again in a hurry. Saying that though, I am glad I finally have read it.

 

REVIEW. In the Air (The City #1) by Crystal Serowka

I love a great debut novel! I've had In the Air on my 'to read' list for months now and I was so excited to find out it was finally available for download. It was a very quick, easy read and sometimes they can be my absolute favourites.

In the Air is about two students newly attending Julliard school.
Samson's life hasn't always been about dance but once he realised he was a natural with such a wonderful talent, he put his life and soul in to his ballet. Despite the constant criticism from his father.
Natalia on the other hand has had a life full of dance and ballet. Her mother, formally a ballet herself, has been on her back her entire life. Julliard is a welcome change in her life, finally she is able to live her life the way she chooses.

As I said before this was quick and easy. The story certainly wasn't unique, but I enjoyed it all the same. I really enjoyed both characters, there wasn't anything to dislike about them. Samson though, had some very douchebag moments that made me want to strangle him. I can usually make excuses, but not in this instance.. (view spoiler)

There were some really great secondary characters in this book and I loved that we got a POV from more than just two people. I can't recall any book where there was 4 different people narrating so that was a really nice change. I'm particularly a huge fan of Natalia's roommate Kingsley, she was really interesting and the sort of friend everybody could do with.

"Life is shit, we all know that, which is why you have to make it your bitch." - Kingsley

Overall, I enjoyed this book and it was most definitely worth the wait. I do have a few questions left unanswered though. What was up with Samson's roommate? A lot of time was spent describing him and his odd ways but nothing was reserved. I also want to know more about Kingsley and her past. What made her the way she is? I know this is the first in a series but at this point I have no idea what the rest of the series is about but I'm hoping these issues are resolved.

I also just want to add in a little about Natalia and her dad. We find out early on that Natalia lost her dad to cancer a year before attending Julliard and as sad and painful as this is, I loved this aspect of the story. I could tell those scenes and issues were coming from the heart of the author and it all felt so real and genuine. I could tell that the author was describing what would have been a beautiful relationship between Natalia and her dad.

 

REVIEW. Own the Wind (Chaos #1) by Kristen Ashley

Oh shit that was good!

I've only read a handful of KA books (Unfinished Hero series) so I went in to this not having a clue who the characters were. Now, this was okay.. I wasn't confused and I got everything that was going but I wish I already had that connection and *knew* the characters. So now I'm going to go off and read The Dream Man series, especially Motorcycle Man so I can fall in love with the rest of them.

Now on this book and I have one thing to say... Shy. SAWOOOON. Jeez he was all kinds of hot badass biker. One thing I absolutely adore about KA books is the no bullshit approach she seems to have to the relationships she creates. The men, including Shy, may be all bad and biker-y but that doesn't mean they treat a woman, their old lady, like shit. Oh no. They worship the ground they walk on and treat them like royalty. Once that relationship is formed you can almost rest easy that they will stay together and get their HAE. I love that. I love having a break from all the angsty crap that tears so many of these relationships apart. So as I was saying.. Shy is as you would expect. Hot. Biker. Badass.

"May feel like you're fallin', Tabby, but remember, I'm at the bottom ready to catch you."

Tabby, Tab, Tabitha... maybe another of my favourite characters. Apparently anybody that read Motorcycle Man me her there but like I said, I didn't read that. That didn't stop me completely loving her character though. She is the daughter of the Chaos MC President but that doesn't stop her standing up for what she wants, and what she wants is Shy. She has since she was 16. The majority of this book takes place when Tabby is in her early 20's where she is nursing a broken heart. Shy is there for her in all the ways that matter and helps her heal and learn to love again. I love how their relationship started off as friends, turned to shit, they got that friendship back and eventually turned it in to more. So much more. This book just goes to show love really can withstand a TON.

"I'm an us again, and that's what I'll be with my woman and the family we make until the day I fucking die."

I'm sure by now you can tell I'm a little in love with this book but if not, I'll just clear that up.. I'm a lot in love with it. The characters, the plot, the emotions, it was everything I want in a book done to perfection. There's just enough drama to keep you hooked and wanting more but not too much to have you rolling your eyes and finding it less than believable.

"I dreamed a dream when I was sixteen and here I am, standing with my dream, feeling it come real."

 

REVIEW. In the Stillness by Andrea Randall

Holy shit.. Andrea Randall can write!

"Sheryl Crow is so full of shit. The first cut most certainly is not the deepest."

In The Stillness isn't pretty. It's dark, gritty, emotional, horrifying, but hopeful. Andrea doesn't hold back with In The Stillness, she puts everything out there and it's up to you to suck it up and roll with it. I did and I don't regret a single second. The opening scene is of Natalie cutting.. shocking way to start a book yes, but did it work? Totally. I was pretty much hooked from then on and didn't stop reading until I'd finished.

In The Stillness was different in the sense that there were two guys/heroes to speak of. We have Eric who is currently Natalie's husband and Ryker, who we later meet, who is an ex boyfriend of Natalie's. I won't say too much about Eric because to be honest, he was an asshole. I had bad vibes from him to start with but I didn't know why. I just knew I didn't like him and wanted Natalie to rid herself of him.

And then we meet Ryker.. ♥
I have to mention first, this book is written in the present tense but when Natalie is thinking about stuff we shift back to the past, experiencing it as it happens. The transition between the past and present was flawless, I never once got confused and I knew where we were at all times.
Back to Ryker.. as I said, in present tense he was an ex of Natalie's who we knew very little about, as we went back in the past we learnt about him bit by bit and I fell in love. Hard. Cutting a long story short (I want you to experience it for youselves) Ryker is sent off to Afghanistan, yep, he's in the army. Shit happens over there. Real, awful, heartbreaking shit and when he comes home from war he's a different person. Completely. 10 years later him and Natalie are strangers to each other.. no contact whatsoever in as many years.

"He wasn't just my 'college boyfriend'. He was the absolute love of my life."

Personally, I think Natalie was an incredible character. As I've said, the book starts off with her cutting. At this point we don't know why but I was intrigued and I wanted to know why. What causes a grown, married woman, with children, to do that? At first I wasn't a huge fan of hers. The way she spoke of her life, especially her struggles with being a mother, were really hard to stomach. "They look adopted. Can you return adopted children?" Just one example of her talking about her kids. But I gave her the benefit of the doubt and the more I learned about her and her life, the more I understood her and appreciated her honesty.

Natalie completely, 100% transformed throughout this. The whole book was her story. A story of trying to cope with the guilt she feels over ruining the life of an ex boyfriend, struggling through a broken marriage, being a parent to children she never wanted and the pain of all that causing her to self harm. The Natalie in the beginning of the book and the Natalie at the end were so worlds apart from each other that you could barely believe they are the same person, but it is believable, because Andrea has done such an amazing job of making it so.

"I keep cutting. For him. For me. For ruining lives. Apparently, I'm good at that."

The ending of this book was ah-may-zing. There was nothing cute of fluffy about it but let's face it, that would not have done this book any justice at all. Instead, it was just so incredibly real. Natalie wasn't riding off in to the sunset with the love of her life, rainbows and bunnies in tow, instead she was getting through life a day at a time. But most importantly? She was happy. And I was ecstatic. I was full on crying happy tears for about the last 10% and honestly, that's the best way to end such a good book.

 

*ARC provided by author in turn for an honest review*