By: Tammara Webber
Published By: Penguin
Released: Available Now
Details: Digital Netgalley, 328 Pages
RATING: 5 LUCAS I SWOON FOR YOU STARS!!
Blurb : Goodreads
A girl who believes trust can be misplaced, promises are made to be broken, and loyalty is an illusion. A boy who believes truth is relative, lies can mask unbearable pain, and guilt is eternal. Will what they find in each other validate their conclusions, or disprove them all?
When Jacqueline follows her longtime boyfriend to the college of his choice, the last thing she expects is a breakup two months into sophomore year. After two weeks in shock, she wakes up to her new reality: she's single, attending a state university instead of a music conservatory, ignored by her former circle of friends, and failing a class for the first time in her life.
Leaving a party alone, Jacqueline is assaulted by her ex's frat brother. Rescued by a stranger who seems to be in the right place at the right time, she wants nothing more than to forget the attack and that night--but her savior, Lucas, sits on the back row of her econ class, sketching in a notebook and staring at her. Her friends nominate him to be the perfect rebound.
When her attacker turns stalker, Jacqueline has a choice: crumple in defeat or learn to fight back. Lucas remains protective, but he's hiding secrets of his own. Suddenly appearances are everything, and knowing who to trust is anything but easy.
(Mature Young Adult/ New Adult)
When Jacqueline follows her longtime boyfriend to the college of his choice, the last thing she expects is a breakup two months into sophomore year. After two weeks in shock, she wakes up to her new reality: she's single, attending a state university instead of a music conservatory, ignored by her former circle of friends, and failing a class for the first time in her life.
Leaving a party alone, Jacqueline is assaulted by her ex's frat brother. Rescued by a stranger who seems to be in the right place at the right time, she wants nothing more than to forget the attack and that night--but her savior, Lucas, sits on the back row of her econ class, sketching in a notebook and staring at her. Her friends nominate him to be the perfect rebound.
When her attacker turns stalker, Jacqueline has a choice: crumple in defeat or learn to fight back. Lucas remains protective, but he's hiding secrets of his own. Suddenly appearances are everything, and knowing who to trust is anything but easy.
(Mature Young Adult/ New Adult)
BOOK REVIEW by Michelle :
Love is not the absence of logic
but logic examined and recalculated
heated and curved to fit
inside the contours of the heart
I loved this book so much I read it twice! Now as a blogger, we have no time to read books twice...... but, I did J
I just totally dug this book. The romance was believable. The angst, understandable, the villain, despicable and the sub characters added to the story the way sub characters should.
The lead characters..... simply stunning.
It felt real.
I was drawn to the cover of this book. Don’t know why, other than it grabbed me. I want to hold a copy and sleep with it. How gorgeous would a book store set of shelves look with this book lining all the shelves?
The title had me wondering what it meant, knowing it was a contemporary romance, I did not read the blurb. I was cold turkey going in.
Straight up BAM! The opening scene is an attempted rape, I was like....whahhhh!! It has a very 3D ‘feel’ to it. I ‘felt’ like Tammara’s words held me down, I was captured on that front seat.
Enter untitled guy to save Jacqueline and give Buck the beating he deserved.
Untitled guy gets a name.... it is Lucas.
swoon
Lucas, dark hair you can run your fingers through, lip ring, body ink, intelligent and an artist. There is so much more to Lucas. Is he a bad boy? What are his secrets?
Jacqueline has been dumped by Kennedy her boyfriend of almost 3 years. She is going through a bad patch and missing classes and mid terms.
Her friends Erin and Maggie have decided to make Operation Bad Boy Phase a priority for Jacqueline, also known as OBBP. Time to get Jacqueline back on her feet.
Erin is a brilliant bestie/roommate . She calls it how she sees it. She is loyal to the core when it comes to her friends. She embraces being a best friend with open arms. She also has a most hilarious mouth.
Jacqueline’s saviour happens to be sharing her Macro Economics class with her, she just never noticed him before. He would be the one up the back sketching.
Jacqueline needs a tutor to save her grades, she needs to learn how to save herself and she wants to know more about this guy Lucas.
Lucas.....this boy is written beautifully. He is a total book boyfriend. I will say no more, you have to read for yourself. I got a lump in my throat with some back story L
Straight up BAM! The opening scene is an attempted rape, I was like....whahhhh!! It has a very 3D ‘feel’ to it. I ‘felt’ like Tammara’s words held me down, I was captured on that front seat.
Enter untitled guy to save Jacqueline and give Buck the beating he deserved.
Untitled guy gets a name.... it is Lucas.
swoon
Lucas, dark hair you can run your fingers through, lip ring, body ink, intelligent and an artist. There is so much more to Lucas. Is he a bad boy? What are his secrets?
Jacqueline has been dumped by Kennedy her boyfriend of almost 3 years. She is going through a bad patch and missing classes and mid terms.
Her friends Erin and Maggie have decided to make Operation Bad Boy Phase a priority for Jacqueline, also known as OBBP. Time to get Jacqueline back on her feet.
Erin is a brilliant bestie/roommate . She calls it how she sees it. She is loyal to the core when it comes to her friends. She embraces being a best friend with open arms. She also has a most hilarious mouth.
Jacqueline’s saviour happens to be sharing her Macro Economics class with her, she just never noticed him before. He would be the one up the back sketching.
Jacqueline needs a tutor to save her grades, she needs to learn how to save herself and she wants to know more about this guy Lucas.
Lucas.....this boy is written beautifully. He is a total book boyfriend. I will say no more, you have to read for yourself. I got a lump in my throat with some back story L
This story flows beautifully. I even learnt a thing or two about ...errr.... the Lawnmower self defense move...it is a corker. Not sure if I would have the time to make the noise whilst defending myself, but the move has certainly embedded itself in my brain.
This story will affect readers in different ways as it does have the issue of rape, which was very well written into the story and the power of women sticking together and to not be afraid to speak up.
No means no!
I loved how Tammara uses Lucas in her story. Such a selfless character he is hiding his own pain.
It would be remiss of me not to mention THAT KISS that went for like 2 pages!!! O.M.G......yes please!
Dr Heller is an awesome character. Talk about a professor with heart.
Benji is so cute and well...... huggable. He is such a small part of this book, but he makes an impact.
I would love a book prequel on Lucas, or a novella ...... I am just interested to know Lucas when he got his tattoos. I think there is a story begging to be told with him and Dr Heller and his own father.
It was EASY to love Lucas.
It was EASY to like Jacqueline.
It was EASY to want Lucas and Jacqueline to be together.
It was EASY to like the sub characters.
This book was EASY to love.
FAVE QUOTES:
“It’s my fault I can’t walk from a house to my truck without one of you trying to rape me?” I threw the word back at him to let him see I could bear it.
“’One of you’? You’re gonna lump me in with that piece of shit?” he pointed at Buck, but his eyes never left mine. “I am nothing like him.” That was when I noticed the thin silver ring through the left side of his lower lip.
“Oh , for Pete’s sake .... as I told my daughter, there’s not a boy on the planet worth this amount of angst. I know; I used to be one.”
“Holy f**kburgers. Who was that hot guy?” Erin carefully maneuvered her daddy-furnished Volvo sedan around the people weaving drunkenly through the parking lot. “If I wasn’t stone cold sober, I’d think he was a figment of my sex-starved imagination.
“I won’t be at your session -- I have lessons with my middle school boys tomorrow ( I think I’d be more impressive to them if I could fart the scales instead of plucking them on the bass.)
When he stared at my mouth for long moments -- drawing , staring, drawing, staring -- I wanted to reach up , grab his T-shirt , and pull him down on me. My hands clenched involuntarily and his gaze flicked there and back.
Eyes blazing , he looked down at me. “Jacqueline?”
I blinked. “Yes?”
“The night we met -- I’m not like that guy.”His jaw was rigid.
“So when do we get to the junk- kicking?” Erin asked.
Don shook his head and sighed. “I swear , there is one in every class.
He gathered me into his arms and kissed me , one hand tangled in my hair and the other caressing down my back, our hearts pulsing out a cadence that the musician in me translated into a concert of lust.
Michelle
My fave contemporary romances this year are:
Easy by Tammara Webber
Slammed by Colleen Hoover
Point Of Retreat by Colleen Hoover
Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie Maguire
Hale Maree by Misty Provencher
Hale Maree by Misty Provencher
Goodness the guy is hunky! Didn't see that coming! Whew!
ReplyDeleteI read my first (I think) NA the other day and though I adored the characters, it wasn't exactly for me. I'll leave this genre to you and Cimm.
You got to try this book for me. I know you have your reasons for staying away from this genre, but.....I think you could get through this one:)
DeleteMich
Ha! Yes the lawnmower move will forever be in the back of my brain! I really loved how easily Tammara incorporated self defense lessons into a book like this. And I love the themes about women needing to stick together. Not to mention Lucas ;) Great review!
ReplyDeleteJesse @ Pretty In Fiction
This is a keeper for the book shelf. It would be purrtttty in hardback!
DeleteThanks Jesse:)
Mich