Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost

After I got done the last Inside Out book I decided that I needed a slight change. Plus, the new book for the Night Prince is out now and I wanted to re-read all the books so I could read the third one when I got it in. 

It's a very good duology but the second one cliff-hanged a bit so I was really happy to hear that there was going to be a third one before the series ended. 

Before I get too ahead of myself here, lol, if you like paranormal romance then you'll like these books. 

Here's the synopsis:

"She's a mortal cursed with a dark power...

After a tragic accident scarred her body and destroyed her dreams, Leila never imagined that the worst was still to come: a terrifying ability to channel electricity and to see a person's darkest secrets through a single touch. Leila is doomed to a life of solitude...until creatures of the night kidnap her, forcing her to reach out with a telepathic distress call to the world's most infamous vampire...

He's the Prince of the Night...

Vlad TEpesh inspired the greatest vampire legend of all--but whatever you do, don't call him Dracula. Vlad's ability to control fire makes him one of the most feared vampires in existence, but his enemies have found a new weapon against him--a beautiful mortal with powers to match his own. When Vlad and Leila meet, however, passion ignites, threatening to consume them. It will take everything they have to stop an enemy intent on bringing them down in flames."

I'm about half-way through this one and I look forward to posting again. Please enjoy :)

Karen Marie Moning Book Signing 1/24/15

I really meant to post this sooner lol. I've been riding on this really great high since that Saturday.

Most people, I think are like me. They think that when you make it big that the person stops caring about the little people that helped them get there. In fact, I'm finding out that the exact opposite is the truth.

My husband, two friends of ours as well as myself obviously lol, went to Newport on the Levee Friday night to get to this signing. Five hours of driving in snow lol so much fun.

We got there about four in the morning Saturday, maybe a little later because it's harder to drive at night than it is in the morning. The men dropped us girls off in the line then went back to the car to crash.

My crazy ass stood in line in the cold until 9 am when Barnes and Noble started handing out the bands for the Q&A with Karen Marie Moning and J.R Ward.

They started sitting people at like 12:15. I am happy to say that I was number 33 so my seat was safe lol. I was so excited though, my friend Jessie told me it was like watching her kids at Christmas. THe excitment was just too much to contain. Then when the authors started talking I was much farther than cloud nine. 

J.R Ward is too funny and it was amazing to just sit back and watch. Jessie egged me on saying I wanted to raise my hand but with this being my very first signing I was happy to just listen. 

There's a website called PopWrapped that did a coverage on the Q&A. It was an amazing job so you may want to check it out. 

Karen was very personable with her audience as well. My phone had died before the signing but when I went up for her to sign my book she said she liked my outfit. 

I may not have had a camera but I will NEVER forget that moment. I don't think that I can even look at that outfit the same ever again!!!!!!

Book Five of the Year Finished

So No In Between was my fifth book of the year and I finished it as of today. The end of this does contain a bit of a spoiler by the way.

To me it wasn't as long as the others when in actuality it was about the same length and the previous three books. This time however, we get a happy ending.

Like most though, it's not just about the ending. It's about the journey as well.

In this book, Sara must find her strength and fight back, against everything. Mark is shut down and he's kicking at everyone. Chris is trying to fight his demons and stand beside Sara no matter what.

Everyone has a stake in this murder trial against Ava but first they have to get through the bail hearing, and Ava's lawyers are pulling out all the stops to make sure that she can get out.

What seems impossible has become possible. There's no body to prove murder, just four witnesses to bring up attempted murder charges.

Panic attacks start coming at Sara again and there's only one person that can help her take them on. Chris Merritt has made good on his promise to never leave Sara again. He says and I just have to quote this "I left you once and it's a mistake I won't be repeating."

So sweet it just makes your heart go pitter patter lol.

With all the bad in this book there is one clear thing. Chris and Sara are amazing for each other. Thier love can seriously conquer all.

The question though that this book truly leaves in your mind, is will Mark be ok? He was the guy that we loved to hate throughout this series and now he's hurt beyond words.

The sweetest part though and I have to share this so I should probably put up a spoiler alert.

Anyway, about the middle of the book you finally see the ring that Chris is designing for Sara. It's absolutely gorgeous with intertwining roses and the gems in the ring are being kept secret for now.

If you have read the books though and are like me, you were expecting a dragon of some time. Not that the rose ring is a disappointment because it's not but not expected.

At the end Chris finally does what we expected. Chris had designed a dragon ring for her left finger the same side that his dragon tattoo is on. The ring symbolizes not his love for her, no that was the roses. No this ring means so much more, it's the strength that he finds in her. Sara is literally his rock and strength.

Together they finally beat the whip that was hanging over their heads. When Amber died, (she killed herself) Sara was terrified that Chris would walk out the door and head for the whip instead of her. Instead he went into his art studio and worked. When he got all of his emotions out on paper he got lost in Sara.

The whip was never even a temptation to him. Chris just needed her.

This book had me so torn up when I read it. An emotional roller coaster if you wish to call it that. It's definitely something that I'm recommending to all my friends.

No In Between- Lisa Renee Jones

I started this one about two days ago actually. See I really need to do a better job keeping up with this.

No in Between is the fourth book in Lisa Renee Jones' Inside Out Series. Originally it was a trilogy but I'm finding out that when an author says that there's going to be another couple books after the last one because there is always more to be said.

This series was no different. She could have ended the series after Revealing Us but there's still Ella missing and what's going on with Mark Compton.

In book four, Sara and Chris are back in San Fransisco to "aid" the police investigation of Rebecca's murder. The police there are running all kinds of theories that may or may not be probable.

They had called Sara in Paris to say that Ava was accusing Sara of murdering Rebecca and blackmailed Mark so Ava had confessed to protect her "Master."

Now the cops are switching gears, they are asking questions to see if maybe Sara murdered Rebecca to endure her dream job would stay hers. They are also going down the avenue that maybe Mark had something to do with this mystery and maybe even Chris.

Things have just become a hot mess for everyone involved now. Sara's even going back to work for Allure (Mark's art gallery) for a few weeks while things are getting settled. Mark's mom is battling stage 3 breast cancer and ended up with a blood infection just before he came back to talk to the police.

I can't imagine what Mark is going through right now. All that pain he has just got to be feeling over everything. It honestly makes your heart hurt.

Before I say anything else here's the synopsis from the back of the book so you can draw your own conclusions:

"Was Rebecca murdered--or has she simply vanished? Sara's obsession with Rebecca's fate has already lead her into danger once. Now the woman who nearly killed her is making accusations that implicate Sara in Rebecca's disappearance. Forced to defend herself to police investigators, Sara must expose dark private pleasures that she and her fiance, Chris, share. And while Chris remains strong and supportive, the formerly invincible Mark is crumbling. He's been too intimate a part of their lives to let that happen...but will he accept help?

Although Sara and Chris love each other deeply, the pressure is triggering past pains. To make it through this, they must face and reveal their final fears: Everything must be exposed, and their hearts and bodies will be pushed to the limits. There can be no shame. No more secrets. No in between..."

Yeah, it definitely leaves you wanting more lol.

Mysterious by Nora Roberts Part 3 Final Post

The third and final book in Mysterious is The Right Path.

I really like this one because it is like one of the fantasies you have of romance when you're young. Morgan is finally convinced by her best friend Liz to come take a vacation and visit her in Greece.

It was there though that she had also been frightened out of her wits. Morgan went for a midnight swim and found herself assaulted by a handsome stranger. It was that assailment that changed the reason why she was there.

Morgan had a mystery to solve and she was going to solve it. Love did not enter into the equation for her yet it happened.

Nicholas Gregoras is half Greek and around Morgan that's the only side that seems to show itself. WOrking for a secret organization, Nick must keep Morgan at a safe distance. His organization wants to use her but all he can think about is keeping her safe.

Everything is horrible. The timing mainly. Nick is trying to bust a smuggling ring and can't afford to not be able to take risks. Yet Morgan keeps getting in the way.

In the end it's together that they end the ring and together they will start their life together in Greece. It's truly a pirate story for adults.

THe story that we all make up in our minds when we're young. That we'll have an adventure and meet some dark handsome stranger that somehow saves us and then we go on adventures together till the end of time.

lol very fanciful I have to admit.

Totally T'd Off Right now

I just spent over a half hour on the phone with Barnes and Noble, literally just now.

I have been a frequent customer of theirs for over ten years now and this is the first time that I have ever had a problem with them.

Burned came out on the 20th, like just in time for the signing Karen Marie Moning is holding on the 24th. My husband loves me, and he pre-ordered it for me on the 15th of December. Because however we are only a one income household, I couldn't afford the expedited shipping just the standard.

I never got any notice about the book at all from them so when I hadn't gotten a notice I got curious. When I logged onto my account today though I was shocked.

The book seriously will not get here until I'm on my way home from the signing. So naturally I start panicking. I don't buy hardbacks, they're just too expensive. COme on this one cost me $20 bucks and it's not even signed yet.

Get my head on straight and a recommendation from my Aunt and my mom, I call Barnes and Noble. I was on hold most of the freaking time, it's ridiculous. It's like they put you on hold to get rid of you. If they leave you there long enough you'll just hang up.

I get a nice foreign girl. Can barely understand her, that pretty much says she can't do anything. That's the first 15 minutes. After that I get transferred to a supervisor.

I don't want much, honestly I don't. All I wanted was either to have the book intercepted and taken to Murfreesboro or just give me a small discount on the book because I have to get my husband to take a whole day off of work to take me an hour and half out to get a new book.

It's not really a whole big issue. Of course though there is nothing anyone can do. Go figure, my once in a lifetime shot is close to becoming one of my biggest breakdowns all because I'm poor basically.

My husband is the only one that works and we had to money into the car to be able to make the trip. Now lets go to the hotel costs and food. Plus now another hour and half's worth of gas and another 20 for another book.

You know being poor sucks because of things like this. You must have to hit the lotto or something to be able to afford to go to a signing

Mysterious by Nora Roberts Part 2

The second story in this novel is Search for Love.

I will even admit that this one isn't one of my favorites that Nora Roberts has done. I'll read it and like it but not one of my favs.

This time we follow Serenity Smith to Brittany to meet her long lost maternal grandmother. It's only been a short time since her parents had died in a plane crash and now her grandmother has practically summoned her across the ocean to visit.

For Serenity this was her last connection to her mom and she wasn't going to miss out on this opportunity. She had to wonder though, why her parents never spoke about her grandmother...ever.

Soon she would see why. However, first she will meet her kissing cousin, Christophe de Kergallen, who dislikes her on the spot....or at least that's how he makes it seem.

For as much as they fight throughout the story you would think that they hate each other with a passion. Serenity takes great pains to conceal that she's fallen in love with this cold aristocrat.

Even Christophe felt Serenity bewitched him the moment she stepped off the train. But what her Grandmother the Comtesse Francoise de Kergallen has told him of Serenity's father makes what he feels for her wrong.

See, before Serenity was even born the Comtesse had a Raphael that she wanted cleaned  and entrusted her father to do so. She had thought nothing of him being there, seeing as her daughter was already engaged to another man. So the day that she fainted in the garden and told the Comtesse that she was pregnant, it was a great shock.

They decided to go to America after the Comtesse disowned her only daughter. She also labeled him then as a thief.

For she believed that he took her Raphael. It was foolish pride that denied her, her daughter and her granddaughter.

It's up to Serenity to clear her father's name and discover what's beneath that cold pride of her grandmother's. For Serenity is hoping beyond hope that she has just one more family member left in the world.

As for Christophe, he's hoping to win the heart of a feisty American woman and make her his forever.

Seeing how there's french in here you can imagine how I've butchered some of these words in my head lol. It's nice read though, and I'd recommend it.

Mysterious 3 books in 1 by Nora Roberts Part 1

While waiting for the fourth book of the Inside Out series to come in, I started a book by my favorite romance author, Nora Roberts. This one, Mysterious, is a compilation of three books in one. For that reason I will post about this book in three parts. Just to make things easier.

The first one is This Magic Moment, staring main characters of Ryan Swan and Peirce Atkins. Ryan Swan is the daughter of Bennett Swan, the owner (I assume) of Swan Productions and she has fought tooth and nail for where she is in the company.

Bennett Swan had wanted a son and he had done nothing to show otherwise after Ryan's mother had died. In his eyes he gave her the best but in hers, Bennett had just shipped her off for someone else to handle. Ryan works as hard as she does one because she loves her job but also because she hopes that one day he will turn to her and say he's just proud to be her father.

I think all children want that from their parents though. When it doesn't happen that little ray of hope stays and never dies out. We just stop thinking about it and move on with our life.

Pierce Atkins had a hard start to life in general. His father was a drunk that after he had a few drinks liked to beat on his mother. Most of the time he would end up in the closet for most of the beatings but every so often his father would hit him as well. The state took him away from his parents and placed him in an orphanage. Pierce however was unadoptable because though the state took him away, his parents wouldn't sign their rights away.

He had become a magician during his stay in a hospital when he was young. Pierce's story was that he fell down some stairs and they were diagnosing him as paralyzed. Of course he wouldn't accept that so he busted ass every day to make sure he would walk again. When he did, magic was his career choice and he became the best. Famous for escapes, his reasoning will come as perfect to most people.

When he was younger, he was locked in and couldn't get out. Now he can and he keeps coming up with new escapes to prove to himself that he really can escape anything now.

Two people with two very different things to prove, come together in this novel to prove that love can overcome anything....even a dark past.

However their hurdle comes when Ryan learns of the new escape that Pierce plans to do for the special. Priding herself on being a strong woman, when she hears his plans it brings her to her knees. It's too dangerous and it scares her near to death.

The question the whole story comes down to is can she love him as he is?

If we love someone, what right do we really have to ask them to change? Especially if what we want them to change is their way of life?

Revealing Us-Lisa Renee Jones The Complete Overview

Seeing as I complete this book in record time lol this is a whole overview instead of pieces.

Sara has decided to drop everything and go to Paris with Chris. He's so much a part of her that she has to try and make this relationship work. If going to Paris is what it takes for Chris to open up about his past and inner demons, then going to Paris is exactly what she'll do.

This whole book focus on Sara's best friend, Ella's, disappearance and the unveiling of Chris's secrets. The whole trip keeps getting turned upside down for them because Sara is going through emotional hell right now.

Not even a day after they had arrived in Paris, Sara gets a call from the detective back in San Francisco that Ava is trying to pin Rebecca's murder on her and blacked-mailed Mark into getting her position at the gallery. We all know that's not true but Ava's lawyer had to find a defense for the psycho somewhere I guess.

On top of that accusation, no one can seem to get a bead on Ella and it's driving Sara crazy with worry. Lets add one more thing, Sara keeps running into Chris' past everywhere she goes yet he won't open up to her yet.

That's enough to drive any reasonable person insane. If he wanted to test Sara's love for him, taking her to Paris was the way to do it. However, Chris does spill his secret and it has to do with his parents death, and the death of his friend Amber's parents.

See, he was visiting his parents' graves with Amber and her parents when they had walked out there was a 16-yr-old with a gun in his hand. Chris had looked into this boys eyes and seen what he needed to see. If Chris hadn't pulled the trigger and killed him first, he would have killed them all without a second thought.

His regret. Chris' demon that still haunts him, is the fact that he couldn't pull the trigger before the boy killed both of Amber's parents. After that she followed Chris down the wrong path. Using pain to get rid of pain.

A few days later, is the anniversary of his parents death. He laid out his coat and opened a bottle of wine for them. They just sat there and took sips. Wine isn't Chris' thing because that's how his father basically killed himself. Drowning his sorrows in wine.

Instead of letting Chris even think about the whip and trying to get rid of pain with pain, Sara takes him in the house and becomes the dominant for all of two minutes before he snapped out of his wallowing mood. When Sara had woken up she found a map on her pillow to where he was.

Now usually I would tell you the end because it's such a cliff hanger but this time, if you want to know the end you'll have to read it yourself. It was the most sweetest end that I could have imagined. If you don't read it then you'll find out when I finally get the other book lol.

I will say that there is a small epilogue. Ella is alive and in some serious trouble.

Stay tuned lol. You wouldn't want to miss the fun.

Revealing Us- Lisa Renee Jones

I am so ahead of myself right now it's not even funny. This is how addicted to the series I am. When I finished the second book in this series, Being Me, I started the next one right away. I barely even got the post up about the second book before I started it.

However I was so caught up in the book, I finished it in two days. That's me TRYING to stretch the book out because I won't get the next one until tomorrow. Now I finished it on Saturday and I won't get the next book I was missing until tomorrow, Tuesday. That's a long wait for me lol.

Even though I am ahead of myself though I will stick to the way that I've been posting lol. I'll post up the synopsis so you can draw your own conclusions then I'll post everything else lol.

"He has become her life, her heart, her very soul. But he is dark and damaged, and his secrets are many. Sara will risk everything for him. He, in turn, will dare to expose his deepest needs, his most erotic desires. And in the fury of passion he will reveal all that torments him, all that he can never escape. To love him, Sara must embrace the darkest part of him, and become his shelter in a storm that will be his ultimate salvation."

Really it's not as bad as it seems in the synopsis, I can promise you that. Enjoy :)

Being Me- Lisa Renee Jones....DONE!!!!!

Good afternoon everybody. I hope that you have all been enjoying my blog so far this year. I am making a better effort to be on here more. This series though has me enthralled.

As of this afternoon, before my family had even gotten home from grocery shopping today, I finished Being Me. I think this is a record for me, even when it comes to the first time I read Fifty Shades of Grey. I started it at around 8:30 last night and finished around maybe 1;30 or 2 this afternoon.

The ups and downs and twists and turns really got to me to keep reading. Can you see why I love my husband so much now? I totally shut him out for a book lol.

Everything at this time seems fine in Sara and Chris' relationship and things are even ok with her and Mark. Lines have been drawn and Mark swore he won't cross them.

Sara even gets Mark's blessing to go to Los Angeles with Chris to his charity function for cancer. It's there that she meets the little boy that has captured Chris' heart. Dylan has leukemia and there is no doubt that he is dying. The most they can do is make him comfortable and keep his spirits up.

Usually I wouldn't mention sad facts like that except this is a turning point for both Chris and Sara. At the gala function, Sara runs into her ex, Michael. The things he says to her are awful and he tries to blackmail Chris to get Sara to go home with him. It's the past that she wasn't ready to share yet rearing it's ugly head.

Of course Chris sees more than he should when it comes to Sara, so when she runs off to the bathroom he follows her and has two of his female friends keep a look out for him while he tries to talk to her. Bawling her eyes out on the floor of the bathroom she tell Chris. Two years ago she was feeling weak and Michael was being kind and she let him in her door. From that point he forced himself on her. She had said no but then ultimately gave into him and did exactly what he was asking her to do. Sara thought for sure that Chris would hate her after that confession but no, he actually confessed that he loves her.

I was so shocked lol. It's a good thing that I don't really read in public because all eyes would have been on me when I started squealing and laughing. It was a point that you shouldn't laugh and be happy but the moment itself was so sweet that you just can't help it.

Chris took care of her that night and the information didn't change how he thought of her. As he put it, one night doesn't dictate a lifetime. That night had made love to her like never before and it was so sweet.

The next turning point was Chris' turn. It was only a few days after they had returned home that Sara received a call from Dylan's mother. Dylan had just passed away but she was worried about Chris because when she told him, he didn't take the news too well.

Now here, this is where we see the side of Chris that Sara was never supposed to see. The dark side of this protective man. Unlike Fifty Shades of Grey and even the Crossfire Series, Chris does not revel in giving pain. He's not the dominant that we are all used to seeing in other series or even in this one. Chris likes pain.

Mark to her to his club to try and pull Chris back from the edge of the abyss. He honestly thought that Sara was the only one that could and it needed to be done because Chris was pushing limits that were way past safe. When Sara walked into the room and saw that Chris was chained up to some poles and being beaten she was shocked.

That would be enough to shock anyone but she got him to stop....at a price. Broken inside and bleeding on the out, Chris was in agonizing pain that she saw him like that and told her it was over. Chris was trying to protect her from himself and forced her away.

It was a week, I think, that she had just stopped eating. Sara wasn't even sleeping. Mark gave her some more to do in her new client's apartment building that was being built. Seeing as the owner, Ryan, and Mark were friends it was easy to convince Ryan to let her do the work. However it was after the opening night that Sara figured things out. Mark and Ryan offered her a way out of the pain she was drowning in. Master and submissive. Sharing. Everything that Rebecca had done with no feeling whatsoever.

Sara never wanted that life. Not even the pain she felt over Chris could make her choose that life and she ran out. To her surprise, Chris was waiting outside for her. Not one word from him and now all of a sudden he shows up. It's funny. Chris pushed her away and yet drove himself insane without her. Two broken people that NEED each other to pull out of the darkness. Now that is something that doesn't seem to change in any book.

It was that night that they decide to try and work through this and figure it out more. No more secrets, no more shutting each other out. Then there's one other little secret that Sara finds out. Packing to go see Chris' god parents, Sara finds Chris' paint brushes.....that match the one that Rebecca had kept.

That leads to a fight that takes Sara to Mark's house. At the time she knew that she was interrupting something but didn't know what. That is until Ava, the girl she thought that she made friends with and owned the coffee house next to the gallery, came stomping out in only a shirt and with Ryan in tow.

Ava threatened that Mark wasn't going to do the same thing with Sara that he did with Rebecca. She would kill her first before that happened again. Which she did try to do.

In that moment everything happened so fast. Ava had a gun on her and Chris was riding his Harley down the street to get there for her not even knowing what he was walking into. Ava fired a shot that sent Chris crashing and somehow the police got called. Thankfully they arrested her but it put Sar and Chris' relationship on rocky ground.

Chris hated that she turned to Mark for the facts instead of trusting him but even though he vowed it would be over if he found her here, he was giving her another chance. It was that evening that Ava confessed. She had killed Rebecca before she could take Mark back again. Very nearly killed Sara for the same reason except that's never been the relationship between her and Mark.

Ella is still missing and there's a gaping void in Sara's heart at the distance that Chris has put between them. Sara spent that night in Ella's empty apartment. Chris showed up for all of five minutes with another one of his little tests. He's leaving for Paris in the morning and he wants her to go with him.

There were no fluttery words, no romance just a simple if you want to know all of me then this is where you'll find it. Just leaving her there and the book in an emotional turmoil.

Does she go and risk her heart again for this man or does she stay and try to make a life for herself again?

Being Me 50% Through

We have officially hit the half-way point in the book and everyone should consider themselves lucky that I stopped reading long enough to post this lol. I really didn't want to put the book down at all.

Rebecca is still missing and all the clues point in different directions. Things between Sara and Chris are getting more serious which is leading her deeper into confusion. Mark is still dark and overbearing with minor moments of humor.

We're getting closer though to what is happening with Rebecca. Chris did as promised and hired a P.I to find out what is going on. So far all we know is that she did go on vacation with the boyfriend but she came back early and alone. There's no way to track her yet because she doesn't own a car and she didn't rent one at the airport. We have also discovered that someone else has also hired a P.I but not to find Rebecca. They hired him to find her journals.

Even though no names were mentioned in them, someone wants them bad enough to hire a P.I to find them. That was who was in the storage unit with Sara at the end of If I Were You and the beginning of this book.

The relationship with Sara and Chris is getting deeper. He has asked her to move in with him and she doesn't know quite how to answer that. It's only been a few weeks after all and the major fear right now is that she loves Chris and it's not reciprocated.

Boundaries are still being tested and they're still trying to figure out how to be together without destroying each other. Both people are broken in different ways and neither has told the other what is actually broken. It's all in bits and pieces.

Sara is determined though to tell Chris her dark secret and lie. Will he stay with her after she tells him though is a big fear.

I just HAVE to get back to this book. Check in later lol

Being Me- Lisa Renee Jones

Book two of this year is the second book in Lisa Renee Jones' Inside Out Series. I have become thoroughly addicted to this series, much like with Fifty Shades and Crossfire.

I never expected it to be this good when I started reading this series but the mystery of it has me completely wrapped up.

Before I give too much away I want to provide the synopsis from the back of the book. With the first book I just jumped into it and never gave anyone time to make their own assumptions or draw their own opinions.

"Sara McMillan is still searching for Rebecca, the mysterious woman whose dark, erotic journal entries both enthralled and frightened her. Tormented by a strong desire to indulge the demands of her new boss while also drawn deeper into her passionate bond with the troubled artist, Chris Merit, Sara must face a past as deeply haunting as Rebecca's written words. In one man's arms, Sara will find the safe haven to reveal her most intimate secrets and explore her darkest fantasies. But is safety just an illusion, when the truth about Rebecca has yet to be discovered?"

So there is the back of the book. What are your thoughts?

If I Were You- The Middle to End

I last left you with Sara going to the art gallery the night of the Alvarez showing.

That night she met two different men that left her breathless. The first was Chris Merritt, though she didn't know at the time she was talking to the amazing artist. The other was the owner of the gallery, Mark Compton.

Showing off her skills with art by selling a painting to a couple that couldn't make up their mind between two Chris Merritt paintings. Doing this earned her Rebecca's job during the summer. It's hard for Sara to be around Mark because he's so intimidating.

Mark has that air of it's mine and so are you. Every time they meet, there's an underlying tone that Mark wants Sara but he never says it.

Chris on the other hand knows that he wants Sara and doesn't keep it a secret. Go figure the bad boy artist is who she's leaning to.

The problem is that Mark and Chris know each other and every time they're around each other it feels like she is just a pawn in a game that the two men are playing. She remembers what it's like to just be a pawn and she never wants to be like that again.

Chris just seems to know how to push all of her buttons and in the right way. He's honest and dominant. Sara hates taking orders but the first order he gave her she was too hot and bothered to care.

Sara is trying to stay guarded because she knows that Chris will eventually leave but he's throwing off hints that he wants to be together more officially yet he won't actually say it.

One night they go to her apartment, against her wishes might I add, and Chris finds Rebecca's journals on her coffee table. She spills her secret about looking for her and he explodes for a few minutes because of what he's read in the journal.

It was an entry about being bound and making this master of hers happy but she was confused by it as well. At the time we don't know but infer that this is what Chris is into. Everything that he's done, warning her away and how he's so dominant in the bedroom (or wherever lol), this is what he does.

However he doesn't want Sara to go into this alone for fear of her safety. Chris surprises her and says that they will hire a private detective to find out what's going on.

When she goes into work the day after that, Mark shows her the video of the tape showing Chris pushing her against the wall and kissing her in the art gallery. He is trying to make her see that Chris is just manipulating her and that he owns her. None of this is sitting right with her and Chris is leaving the next day.

Sara cancels dinner with Chris to stay late at work, just to think about what's going on. She's falling for this guy even though logic says not to and it shouldn't be love yet. When she finally leaves, Chris is waiting for her.

This is where the big secret is revealed. Yes, Chris knew about the camera. No, he didn't put on a show for Mark, he just forgot about it because all he saw was Sara. No, he's not sorry that Mark saw it because he knows exactly where Mark wants Sara.

To prove it, Chris takes her for a ride to a place that Mark owns. It's a BDSM palace. All Chris does is get a room with a live feed in it to show her what Mark wants to do to her.

That wakes Sara up in a horrible way. Now she has it in her mind that she can't be what he needs because she can't be what was in that room. Chris is generous and gives her space to think.

Sara wakes up the next morning, remembering Chris has left early that morning and now it's a full week of just thinking about her choices. To her surprise though there is something waiting for her.

Chris drew her when she was pressed, naked up against the glass the first time they had sex in his apartment. It had a little note saying "You're all I Need". Now if that isn't sweet, I don't know what is.

Sara's ready to admit that he's her drug right now and that she misses him terribly. However she's been neglecting to try and find Rebecca which is the whole point of her being in the world.

Sara makes calls to Rebecca's building manager and a few other contacts that she found but none of them are helpful. The last thing she decides to do for the night is go back to the storage unit and see if she can hunt up more clues.

Lisa Renee Jones leaves us with the fact that there is someone else in the unit with Sara.

Literally lol, that is the end of book one.

If I Were You by Lisa Renee Jones

This is my first book of the new year and I have to say I picked a good one. I'm about 44% of the way through it according to GoodReads, in my terms I'm on chapter 15 lol.

So far we have Sara McMillan, a poor high school teacher with a dream of working in the art field. Her best friend, Ella, buys a storage container as her latest venture that has many hidden secrets. Ella rushes off in the middle of the night to get married, leaving the storage container in Sara's hands.

In this storage container lies journals of a woman named Rebecca. Rebecca's journals are very erotic and for a school teacher that has a scarred past and no current life, reading them was exciting. Until Sara came upon more troubling entries.

These entries lead her to look for Rebecca. Sara just wants to know that she is alright and to return her things to her. This path leads her to her dream.

Sara has always wanted to work around art, however she knew that dreams don't pay the bills. When she finds out that Rebecca works at one of the more prestigious art galleries, Sara gets immediately fascinated.

Every time Sara calls to talk to Rebecca, every person says that she is on a type of vacation. The gallery hosted an Alverez art show for charity that week, giving Sara the PERFECT excuse for her to indulge herself and also to go and physically seek out Rebecca.

That night changed her life.....

Feel free to contemplate on those changes and I'll be back with more later on today because that's just the beginning.

Good Reads Goal for the Year

Good Reads remains ever so diligent this year. When we had gotten back from Maryland this year I found an email waiting from me asking me about my reading goal this year.

I have always strived for what seems at the time inconceivable so I decided to keep with that tradition lol. The goal I have set for myself this year is the same as it was last year and didn't reach.

By the end of this year my goal is to read 100 books. No re-reading any of the same books this year.

That's part of what makes the challenge hard. I love to re-read my books even though I have so many that I could easily read a book a day and never repeat the same one.

The book that I am on now I technically started in December but I knew that I wasn't going to be able to read much from the time I started it till after I got back from Maryland the first week in January.

I'll be back to post on what I have on that book so far in a few :)

Who else has a reading goal this year? Or even in a month? Short term goals are good as well.

I'm Back Everyone :)

I know that I was a horrible blogger last year. I couldn't keep up with what I was doing and be on here. This year I am hoping to change all that.

With it being the new year and everything I am hoping that I can get on here a lot more and maybe get a few more followers.

The whole point of creating this blog was to interact with people about the books that I have been reading as I read them.

See, I read a lot usually and the books that I read my best friend isn't reading. She's behind on my reading list because now she has a job....I don't.

I miss being able to talk to someone about what I'm reading. My husband doesn't read but he listens to me ramble and my parents just don't care.

I'm desperate lol. I REALLY need people to talk to about books lol. Please hit me up on here.