Weekly Roundup [5/6-5/12]

Hello, everyone! I hope you all had a very happy Mother's Day! On Saturday, I went on a Polish Pottery adventure around Ohio with my mom and sister. We visited three Polish Pottery stores and I got the cutest mugs! I can't wait to use them. Then, on Sunday, my family went out to breakfast and then saw The Other Woman, which turned out to be just as funny as the trailer. We really enjoyed it! Needless to say, it was a pretty great weekend. Today, I'm heading back to school to finish up my final exams. By this time on Wednesday, I'll be officially done with my Junior year of college! That means that it will finally be summer and I will have the next three months to relax, work at my new job, and read as many books as I can. Summer can't come soon enough!

Book Reviews

One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern 

Make You Mine by Macy Becket

Memes

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Covers I'd Frame as Pieces of Art

Waiting on Wednesday (142)

Follow My Book Blog Friday (135)

Stacking the Shelves (99)

Blitzes

Risky Games by Tracy Solheim Blitz + Giveaway

Stacking the Shelves (99)

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews where bloggers share what they got throughout the week!

From the Publisher

So many amazing books from so many of my favorite authors! I can't wait to dig into the newest releases from M Leighton, Samantha Young, and Kim Karr! And how adorable does To Scotland with Love look? I can't wait for the chance to sit down and read all of these!

That's it for me! What did you all add to your shelves this week? 

Book Review + Giveaway: Make You Mine by Macy Beckett

Make You Mine

By Macy Beckett

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Source: Publisher

Summary: For ninety-nine years, every man in the Dumont family has remained a perpetual bachelor. Residents of Cedar Bayou, Louisiana, whisper about a voodoo hex cast upon the family, sabotaging each man’s chance at marriage. In truth, the Dumont men have their own player personalities to blame, and Marc is no exception. As captain of his family’s riverboat, he’s broken hearts up and down the Mississippi. That is, until his high school crush strolls onboard... 

Allie Mauvais rocks the boat when she fills in as pastry chef. She hasn’t seen Marc since senior year, when rumors flew that her great-great-grandmother was the one who cursed the Dumonts. After two weeks on the water, neither can deny the attraction that still burns between them. But to truly reach Marc’s heart, Allie must show him that the hex isn’t real, and it’ll take more than her mouthwatering sweets to prove it. Will Allie’s love be enough to finally make Marc hers?

Review: Why do books have to continue being so gosh darn cute? Haha, I absolutely loved this book! Not only does the main character bake, which I happen to love doing as well, but the romance was just too good not to love!

For the past 99 years, no Dumont man has ever married thanks to a curse the Mauvis women placed upon them. Marc Dumont is finally the captain of his family's vessel Belle and it seems like nothing can go right. When his pastry chef gets the German measles, Allie Mauvis is more than ready to come aboard and take on the job to gain more exposure for her bakery. Marc is far from thrilled, but two weeks aboard his ship with the woman he's had a crush on for the past 9 years makes it hard to resist her. As soon as they start exploring their feelings for each other, though, even more things on the ship go wrong and Marc is convinced the curse will never let him and Allie be together…

Okay, so the curse thing had me a bit weary in the beginning. I like my contemporary romances nice and realistic, not full of weird paranormal elements. However, the curse was kind of an unknown entity the entire time, if it really existed or if it was just in the Dumont men's heads, subconsciously ruining any hope at having a serious relationship. I thought it was so cute, then, how worried Marc was about his feelings for Allie. Not only did he have to worry about the repercussions from his family about liking and Mauvis woman, but also he had to worry about the repercussions from the "curse" on his beloved business. Either way, the curse definitely provided one entertaining story!

The best part of this book, though, was definitely the characters. I loved Allie and how she tried to be strong with all of the stigma from society for her family's "abilities," but she is only human so it's hard to take all of the harsh judgement without letting it get you down. Marc tries to be stubborn, but he's definitely a softy when it came Allie because he finally sees her as a real person who does have feelings and isn't as strong as she appears. Then, I loved how Marc's siblings all worked on the ship with him. Ella was such an awesome person (who wouldn't want to be best friends with her?), Nick and Alex were fun additions, and Worm was, well, Worm. There's so much more substance to a book that has secondary characters who can hold their own, and Make You Mine had the best cast of characters that kept the story interesting and lovable. 

Overall, I absolutely loved Make You Mine. The author definitely had some fun with words by her witty dialogue and fun use of puns when her characters would banter. I love it when the story has some funny moments and this one definitely did. Oh, and the romance wasn't too bad either! Overall, Make You Mine is the perfect contemporary romance to spend the day getting lost in the world of where a captain and a pastry chef overcome their pasts and finally let each other in. I absolutely can't wait to find out what happens in the next book between Beau and Devyn! Even more great writing from Macy Beckett? Yes, please!

Giveaway

One lucky reader will get to win a copy of Make You Mine by Macy Beckett! Just fill out the rafflecopter below! ***US Only*** Ends 5/17

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Follow My Book Blog Friday (135)

This is a meme hosted every Friday by Parajunkee, where book bloggers answer a question each week and check out how others answered it. It's a cool way for bloggers and viewers to connect and learn more about each other!

Question: What living author or authors would you like to have dinner with? 

Answer: Ooooh, so may to choose from! If I had to go with my top three, though, I'd love to have dinner with…

Nicholas Sparks, Rainbow Rowell, and Jennifer Echols. They are all three my favorite authors and I love the way they write! And they're all totally different in their writing styles and genres that they typically write in, so it'd be fun to see how they'd all interact! Why can't that happen in real life? That'd be one awesome dinner! 

Book Review: One Hundred Names by Cecelia Ahern

One Hundred Names

By Cecelia Ahern

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Source: Publisher

Summary: The new novel from the bestselling author. Journalist Kitty Logan's career is being destroyed by scandal - and now she faces losing the woman who guided and taught her everything she knew. At her terminally ill friend's bedside, Kitty asks - what is the one story she always wanted to write? The answer lies in a file buried in Constance's office: a list of one hundred names. There is no synopsis, nothing to explain what the story is or who these people are. The list is simply a mystery. But before Kitty can talk to her friend, it is too late. With everything to prove, Kitty is assigned the most important task of her life: to write the story her mentor never had the opportunity to. Kitty not only has to track down and meet the people on the list, but find out what connects them. And, in the process of hearing ordinary people's stories, she starts to understand her own.

Review: I don't how how I've gone this long without reading a Cecelia Ahern novel. As much as I love the movie PS I Love You and bought a bunch of her books, this is actually the first time I've sat down and read one. And I'm so happy was I far from disappointed!

After Kitty Logan made the biggest mistake of her journalistic life, her career and reputation have gone up in flames. Now, Kitty's friend and boss Constance has cancer and it looks like time is running out. Kitty asks Constance what was the story she's always wanted to write but never has, all Constance tells her is to look at the file at her home. Kitty gets the file, but Constance dies before she has the chance to explain. Inside contains the list of one hundred names. Nothing more, nothing less. Kitty is determined to write Constance's final story and with each person she meets, Kitty slowly turns back into the person she used to be and learns so much more from these ordinary people than she ever thought possible. 

I shouldn't be surprised seeing as it's a Cecilia Ahern book, but this book was just so gosh darn touching. Everything starts off in a bad place with Kitty's reputation ruined and her best friend dying. But things start turning up as Kitty is determined to find the missing link between the 100 names that Constance had left behind. I absolutely loved Kitty's character and how she acted like a real person with all of the trials she had to face. She wasn't always strong and didn't know how to solve all of her problems, which made me like her that much more. She really had to lean on other people, which tested her friendships and showed how important the relationships in her life really were. Kitty had to dig deep within herself and remember what she really loves about reporting when going on this journey. 

Within those 100 names, Kitty meets around six of them and they are truly unique people. I loved every single one of their stories and how vastly different they were. While it took some digging, all of them let Kitty into their lives and changed as they opened up their personal thoughts and feelings to a stranger. Ambrose was probably my favorite because she seemed like the most damaged in the beginning and the most inspiring by the end. All of their stories were inspiring and formed one incredibly sweet novel. 

While it's not the most exciting novel ever, I still enjoyed Kitty's fight to write Constance's story and figure out why those 100 names were so important to her. There were so many relationships and emotions and I loved how the stories all wove together at the end. If you want a sweet story that leaves you feeling warm and happy, I'd definitely check out One Hundred Names!

Waiting On Wednesday (142)

This is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine where every Wednesday bloggers highlight a book that they are eagerly anticipating the release of!

Everything Leads to You

By Nina LaCour

Release Date: May 15, 2014

Summary: A love letter to the craft and romance of film and fate in front of—and behind—the camera from the award-winning author of Hold Still.

A wunderkind young set designer, Emi has already started to find her way in the competitive Hollywood film world.

Emi is a film buff and a true romantic, but her real-life relationships are a mess. She has desperately gone back to the same girl too many times to mention. But then a mysterious letter from a silver screen legend leads Emi to Ava. Ava is unlike anyone Emi has ever met. She has a tumultuous, not-so-glamorous past, and lives an unconventional life. She’s enigmatic…. She’s beautiful. And she is about to expand Emi’s understanding of family, acceptance, and true romance.

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I still can't get over how gorgeous that cover is. I love it! Also, it's by Nina LaCour, who rocks. I loved The Disenchantments, so I can't wait to see what she has in store for us in this novel. The main character sounds like someone I would love, being a film buff and romantic myself. And I love the mystery behind the letter she finds. I wonder where it will lead Emi in the end? I guess I'll have to read it to see!

Risky Game by Tracy Solheim Blitz + Giveaway

As a sports romance lover, I am super excited to be a part of the release day launch for Risky Game by Tracy Solheim. There's nothing better than reading about a heroine who falls for an athlete. Here's a little bit about the book…

Risky Game (Out of Bounds #3)

By Tracy Solheim

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Summary: Just when he was at the top of his game… She changed the rules.

Baltimore Blaze tight-end Brody Janik is a natural born football star.  At twenty-seven, his record-breaking athletic performance and his cover-boy good looks have turned him into a household name.  But Brody’s hiding a major secret behind his charming, public persona: a health condition that may cut his career short.

PhD candidate Shannon ‘Shay’ Everett works multiple jobs to put herself through school—including an unpaid internship with the Blaze training department.  Strapped for cash, Shay answers the call of a NFL gossip blogger to uncover personal details about the Blaze players. Sneaking into the locker room one night, she gets entangled in Brody’s secret… and swept up by his charm.

Brody isn’t sure what to make of the gawky girl with the whiskey eyes, especially when he discovers she was snooping. His first instinct is to turn her in as a snitch, but she could destroy him by sharing his secret. Instead, he decides to keep her close… perhaps closer than either of them originally intended…

Amazon // B&N // iBooks // Books-a-Million // indiebound // Goodreads 

About the Author

Author Tracy Solheim has written her share of best sellers and note-worthy books. Unfortunately most of them line the shelves of dusty government offices around the world never to see the light of day. She hopes to change that with her series of contemporary romantic fiction novels published by Berkley Books.

“I guess you could say I’m a frustrated sports writer at heart, but I love writing—and reading—books centered around sports. I can thank my dad for that. He introduced me to Dick Francis novels when I was a teenager and I was hooked. I am also a big fan of the happily ever after endings of romance novels, so it was only natural that I combined the two elements in my fiction debut.”

Website // Facebook // Twitter // Goodreads

Tour Giveaway

Tracy is giving away a $25 Amazon or B&N gift card to one random entrant. Just fill out the rafflecopter below to enter!

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