Review: Falling for Alaska by Belle Calhoune

Belle Calhoune sets the beautiful stage of Moose Falls, Alaska with her latest, Falling for Alaska. With all the charm and beauty of this small town romance, she pens a captivating novel of love, forgiveness and second chances that will leave you feeling good.

Former pro-football player Xavier Stone returns to his hometown reluctantly, tasked with helping his grandmother's cider company and gastro pub. Yet, he finds himself facing not only the challenges of running the family business but also confronting his past and strained relationships with his family. Enter True Everett, the determined and spirited owner of the restaurant managed by Xavier's grandmother. Sparks fly between Xavier and True, but their initial animosity threatens to derail any chance of romance.

As the book progresses with this enemies to lovers theme, they tread through their differences and confront their own insecurities, leading us towards a beautiful journey filled with heartwarming moments and swoon-worthy romance hea..

There are so many things to love about this book but most striking is the imagery throughout the book that places the reader right in this beautiful town. The setting that is created adds to the charm and character of not only the book but is giving you such a comforting feeling throughout. 

Beyond the beautiful setting are the wonderful characters. There is such depth and richness to them, the obstacles that have weighed down their lives brought them together but their vulnerability and insecurities make them relatable. Xavier's struggle to reconcile with his past dealing with a father who abandoned him and a his ex that left him at the worst of his life made it hard for him to trust. True, who after losing her parents sacrificed her life to raise her brother, is doing everything to protect what she has built for them with fear that she will lose everything. 

These two independent struggles give you something to root for. Not just the journey for them finding their destiny but the second chance to find the joy and happiness that they seemed to have been robbed from. 

In addition to them, we are blessed with the wonderful relationship between Xavier and his brothers.The fun banter and their loving relationship adds to the charm. His grandmother creates some sassy moments that will make you smile. And the cute moments between Tru and her brother will make you laugh and your heart smile for the love she has for him. 

Overall, this is another wonderful book to add to the small town romance pile that you plan to read if you haven’t already. This has all the charm of a great storyline, wonderful characters that will love, and a gorgeous setting. Not sure about the details about the second book other than it looks like it will be out in the fall.

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Review: My Side of the River: A Memoir by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez

Immigration to the US has been sought out for many years. This country once prided itself as a melting pot that embraced those who wanted to emigrate here for the opportunity to escape violence, poverty, secure work or educational opportunities or mostly freedom to live a life that is safe and good for their family. Sadly, with that optimism many have faced discrimination depending on their choice of pursuance, legally or illegally. 

As people are entitled to and have the right to their opinion, it’s also important to see and hear the voices of the people who get silenced by stereotypes or the actions of some that affect the perception of the group as a whole. My Side of the River is a beautiful memoir that represents an experience of a woman of immigrant parents, including their deportation back to Mexico and the sacrifice, determination and perseverance of trying to live the American dream.

Based on the life experience of Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez, she was born in the US from immigrant parents. Her parents wanted her to have a better opportunity than they had and made the sacrifice to come to the US to plant the seed for her to blossom. Knowing the risks but determined, her parents came here and worked hard to be able to have a life that every immigrant dreams of. Sadly, beginning the most important journey of a young person’s life, her parents got deported and it changed the physical trajectory of their family but never the love and hope that they planted to keep going.

Since she was a US citizen, she was left to take care of herself and brother. Going to Mexico was not an option. Her parents wanted her to be somebody and her determination defied any obstacles that she met succeeding past expectations and societal perceptions. Her journey was tough, met with setbacks but she pushed back and fought so that her sacrifices nor her parents were in vain.

For people out there who have strong opinions about immigration that involve those who are illegal, I know it’s hard because our headline news only focuses on the people who have committed crimes. You never hear the perspective and experiences such as hers that have parents who love and will do anything for their children to be able to be somebody and have an opportunity to have a good life. The love of a family, the weight of the world on the shoulders of the children who have illegal parents, the pain of being separated all with the inspired fight for the American dream make this an inspired read that will hopefully open and capture your heart.

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Review: Hypnotized by Love by Sariah Wilson

Hypnotized by Sariah Wilson brings a wonderful romantic comedy that blends an irresistible narrative of love, self discovery and second chances. 

At the heart of the book, we are introduced to hypnotist Savannah Sinclair. With praise for her unconventional methods, she has helped many clients overcome many of their issues. With all the good that she has done, she has met her fair of skeptics.One in particular, Mason Beckett, whose personal and professional setbacks have brought him into the space of hypnotism, was tasked with writing an expose on its techniques. Little does he know how the power of suggestion can change your life.

To accomplish his goal, he has to be a willing participant open to the experience. Unfortunately during the session an emergency happened that left him in a hypnotized state. Unsure of what to do, Savannah finds herself in a dilemma that challenges her personal and professional wants.In this trance, Mason is acting like a different person. The kind of person that has her heart starting to fall for the one person who broke it.

What follows is an amazing story of second chance love. As he undergoes a transformation in this new state, he and Savannah rewrite their story that was meant to be. Their chemistry was beautiful and their journey was worth reading. Besides the charm of their journey, also to note the wonderful relationship with her twin sister and friend brought some fun to the mix that contributed to its page turn worthy experience. 

So overall, is there ever a book by Sariah Wilson that doesn’t have me turning the pages. No. If you love her books, this one will be no different. Wonderful characters with a sweet story that will make you laugh and root for their hea.

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Audiobook Review: Skip to the End by Molly James

Summary:

In this joyful romance, one wild night results in three kisses—only one successful—and leaves a perpetually single Amy searching for her perfect match so she can find a happy ending.

Amy Daniels has a pretty nice life. Her career is on the up, she loves her friends, and she's about to buy her very own flat. On a good day, Amy could be described as a catch—so why is she perpetually single?

The trouble is, Amy can see something no one else can: the end. As soon as she kisses someone, she knows, in intimate, vivid detail, how their relationship will finish. A screaming argument in the middle of the supermarket over milk. An explicit email sent to the wrong address. A hasty escape through a bathroom window on the second date. At the altar—runaway-bride style. There seems to be no end to the unhappy endings.

After years of trying, and failing, to change a pre-written future, Amy has given up. But then she drunkenly kisses three men at her best friend's wedding and sees three possible endings: two painful, one perfect. The problem is, Amy can't really remember who she kissed, and worse, what ending belongs to which person—the only thing she knows for certain is that she's determined to find out…

Review

To be honest, I'm curious how my experience would've been had I read the book prior or instead of. I didn't initially connect with the audiobook. It took some time to connect with the narrator partly due in part in the dialect. That isn't something problematic, it was just something to adjust to. Once the story delved into why Amy was perpetually single, I was able to zone into the progression of the plot.

Ideally my curiosity piqued after that conversation with her mother. My anticipation grew with the book and the enthusiasm of the narrator kept my interest. In the context of the plot of the book, I personally would've enjoyed dual narrators, especially in those moments to differentiate which guy when she was trying to figure out who she kissed. Also, I would've loved more time with Amy and Garrett and less on the others. Once her discovery was made about him, it felt rushed. I was completely absorbed with this moment and wanted to hear more but ultimately it was interesting book.

In reflection, for my own personal experience and preference for this book, I probably would've enjoyed the book version better. That being said with no criticism of the audiobook because the narration was good. It's just for the type of plot this was and what I'd hope to take away from it, the book would've given that experience for me. You may feel differently and love the audiobook.

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Review: Pity Pact by Whitney Dineen

Returning to the Pity Series, Pity Pact is the third book featuring Paige Holland. I was really curious from the last book when things didn't work out between Missy and Tim. Would the chemistry between Paige and him go anywhere? Well, as I anticipated how her journey would go, it was so worth the wait. Paige was fun, sassy and made this quite the page turner. The banter between her and Tim had me laughing out loud the whole book.

For those who don't know, Paige Holland is a teacher in their local town. After making a pact between her and best friend Missy, if love didn't find them, they would take their chances on a dating realty show. Since Missy found her love, Paige followed through and things quickly had her thinking this was the biggest mistake.

Things got complicated when Tim was asked to be a participant. Despite her being friends, there had been this unexplored what if. Tim wanting to stay far away from reality dating shows, saw an opportunity to make his ex jealous, didn't realize that he'd find himself facing unexplored feelings of his own towards Paige. Will these two find their way to their destined hea?

Even though I enjoyed reading the first two books, this one really got me hooked. Considering what happened in this book, I have some strong feelings with what happened and are opened to seeing Trina get her hea. She don't deserve it but I will be open minded. This was definitely a slow burn romance that when it happened was worth all the agony. These characters were meant to be with each other. These were two broken hearts that mended each other.

Overall, this is now my favorite of the series. We'll, have to find out what happens to Trina in the concluding book, Pity Parade.

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Review: Baby X by Kira Peikoff

There hasn’t been an author that has captured my interest in medical thrillers such as Kira and with her latest Baby X, an interesting plot considering our current climate regarding this subject area, I was drawn in from the start. 

Baby X, definitely raises an interesting perspective into the future involving technology and science with embryos. If you had the choice to be able to create a child with the most desirable genes, would you? When a black market operative, The Vault preys on famous people to make money on their cells to create embryos, it becomes their worst nightmare not knowing who will get them. When superstar Trace Throne finds himself on the black market, he decides to do whatever is necessary to keep himself safe. He hires Ember Ryan to protect him from any chance of his cells getting out there to keep him safe from theft. 

Despite Ember’s expertise with biosecurity and her fierce loyalty to protect Trace at all costs, they find themselves growing closer but just one problem. When a stranger confronts Trace with his worst fears, secrets are revealed and challenge her loyalty and their relationship. 

Told in alternating perspectives, this was an interesting plot. Incorporating science and technology with a future perspective that might not be too far fetched, piqued my curiosity as the book progressed. To be honest, as the first chapter initially hooked me into the book, there was a period of time that cooled down for me but once it got going again, I couldn’t stop reading. That ending wasn’t anything that I would’ve anticipated. I’m still thinking about it. I actually had to sit back and wonder if I missed something because that was a twist that I wasn’t expecting but brought the book together perfectly. 

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