RELEASE DAY: Sweet (Contours of the Heart #3)

Join me in celebrating the release of SWEET by Tammara Webber! Check out the excerpt and teasers below!

Sweet (Contours of the Heart #3), by Tammara Webber
Publish Date: April 27, 2015
Genre: new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | iBooks | B&N | Kobo | Amazon UK

(Synopsis) He’s the love of her life, but he doesn’t know it.
She’s his one moment of sacrifice in a lifetime of survival.

He was damaged and wild, but resilient.
She’s always been obedient. Now she’s restless.

Home for the summer between college and med school, Pearl Torres Frank knows two things: Boyce Wynn is the embodiment of everything she should run from, and everything she wants to run to. Rebellious and loud. Unconcerned with society’s opinion of him. Passionate. Strong. Dangerous.

And one more trait he hides from everyone but her:  

Sweet.

Boyce watched me, a lit cigarette in one hand and a koozied beer in the other. We hadn’t spoken since that kiss, other than his usual juvenile quips during biology—the ones that drove Mel and Mr. Quinn insane and made Landon smirk and shake his head and had me biting the inside of my cheek to suppress my smile.

At first, I’d been confused, then disappointed, and then angry. I’d worked my way to acceptance, like when I’d known I was drowning and there was nothing I could do. He’d merely gone back to being Boyce Wynn, who did what he wanted and who he wanted. And I’d gone back to being Pearl Frank—star student, social royalty, good girl.

But I couldn’t forget that kiss. The fixed glint of his eyes across the fire said that neither could he.

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of EASY and BREAKABLE (Contours of the Heart series - NA), as well BETWEEN THE LINES, WHERE YOU ARE, GOOD FOR YOU and HERE WITHOUT YOU (Between the Lines series - YA/NA).

I'm a hopeful romantic who adores novels with happy endings, because there are enough sad endings in real life. Before writing full-time, I was an undergraduate academic advisor, economics tutor, planetarium office manager, radiology call center rep, and the palest person to ever work at a tanning salon. I married my high school sweetheart, and I'm Mom to three adult kids and four very immature cats.

website:
tammarawebber.com
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NEW ADULT MONDAYS: Breakable (Contours of the Heart #2)

 The New Adult genre - their bad boys and big problems and epic loves make them engrossing tales that are so easy to lose yourself in. What's not to love about that? And, now, thanks to the cool chicks at Bewitched Bookworms, we can show these books the love they deserve in a weekly feature - New Adult Mondays.

Breakable (Contours of the Heart #2), by Tammara Webber
Published May 6, 2014
Publisher: Berkley Romance
Format: paperback, provided by the publisher
Genre: new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble


Rating: 5 STARS

(From Goodreads) He was lost and alone. Then he found her.
And the future seemed more fragile than ever.

As a child, Landon Lucas Maxfield believed his life was perfect and looked forward to a future filled with promise — until tragedy tore his family apart and made him doubt everything he ever believed.

All he wanted was to leave the past behind. When he met Jacqueline Wallace, his desire to be everything she needed came so easy…

As easy as it could be for a man who learned that the soul is breakable and that everything you hoped for could be ripped away in a heartbeat.

Easy was one of the first new adult books I read and loved more than a year ago. I remember that it captured me in no way that any other book had to date. I had no idea that there was so much more that I wanted to know about Lucas and Landon and how he felt about Jacqueline before he consciously knew himself. 

We know the story of Lucas and Jacqueline - how they met under horrible circumstances. How they became friends under false pretenses. How they finally got together after several chance meetings. We know all this as it played out through Jacqueline's eyes in Easy. It's remarkable how different things looked when told from Lucas' POV. And, that was my second favorite part of Breakable - that the same story could seem so different when seen from the other side of things. 

I say it's my second favorite part, because my MOST favorite part of Breakable is the fact that it's sorta kinda told in dual POV - Lucas' and Landon's. We get Lucas' full story, dating back to when he was 13 and lost his mother in an unspeakable tragedy that is only touched upon in Easy, right up to events that occurred even after those that ended Easy. 

The parts of the story that were from "Landon's" POV were those told before he arrived at college under the watchful and loving eyes of the Heller family. We find out what really happened the night his mom died, and we see it all through Landon's young eyes. We read about his eventual rift with his father and their move to the beach to live with his grandfather. We see first hand the trouble he had at school and the descent into juvenile delinquency that Lucas only mentioned in passing in Easy. 

Landon's story is so utterly heartbreaking and inspiring. It made me so sad to see how his dad completely closed himself off from the world and his son after his wife died. I thought it was interesting when Landon found common ground with his arch enemy at his new school. And, I also had to laugh at myself when I felt a ton of irritation at the girl Landon fell in love with in high school because it felt to me like he was cheating on Jacqueline, even though he hadn't even met her yet. 

First and foremost, Breakable is a story about redemption. It's about remaking yourself after you lose everything you were to something completely out of your control. It's about "befores" and "afters." I knew I loved Lucas before reading Breakable. I was utterly, bookishly obsessed with him after reading Breakable. And, it makes his story with Jacqueline in Easy that much richer now that I know everything that was going on behind the scenes. 

So many times I see people say that they don't plan to read a story retelling because, well, it's essentially the same story. Right? Well, in this case, you get so much more than what was in Easy. At least half the book's events didn't show up in Easy. And much of the time before that fateful night when Lucas went to Jacqueline's dorm to draw her, they spent apart. It is NOT the same story - well, it is. But, it isn't too. Just... try it. Trust me on this one.

Feeling Duped

You may notice my post count for the week is one fewer now than it was at this time yesterday. That is because my New Adult Mondays post from this past Monday, June 24, has been removed. It was a review for AMAZINGLY BROKEN by Jordin Williams. A work that information brought to light today revealed was plagiarized from Tammara Webber's EASY and Jamie McGuire's BEAUTIFUL DISASTER.

Most of you are already aware of this. Let's face it - good drama is good drama. I eat it up as readily as the next person. In case you haven't caught the original post that outed this issue, check out here:  http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/the-plagiarizing-of-tammara-webbers-easy-by-jordin-williams/

I struggled with whether to post this and give even more page time to this person. In the end, I decided that it was worth posting something so that I could at least apologize to you all for posting something that ended up being a complete and utter farce. I have become quite proud of this blog and its content, and the fact that this has marred my history... well, to be frank, it pisses me the hell off.

What makes me even more angry is that I've read both EASY (my review found here) and BEAUTIFUL DISASTER (my review found here). And LOVED them! I feel like I let both Tammara and Jamie down by not recognizing the shenanigans that went on myself. I know that's an irrational thought, but there it is.

Let me go on record as saying plagiarism is for cowards. If you want to be an author, good for you. It's a great dream and one you should most definitely pursue. Don't be afraid of criticism - it will only make you better. Don't be afraid of rejection - it's to be expected. Don't be afraid of never making it big - the fact that you're expressing yourself and chasing your dreams is impressive and admirable.

But, do not let your fears drive you to copy already celebrated and established works. Because those authors waded through their own sets of fears to get where they are today and by you watering down their words and repackaging them as your own, you're hurting them and selling yourself short.

From what I understand, Amazon has already removed AMAZINGLY BROKEN from it's site, and if you've already purchased it, your money will be refunded. To Tammara Webber and Jamie McGuire, I'm sorry this happened to you, and I'm sorry I was part of the grassroots campaign to market this book. Please know I truly respect both you and your exceedingly difficult job, which you do incredibly well.

This is the last I'm going to speak about this. I'd much rather get back to the fun business of writing reviews, hosting giveaways and doing all sorts of other fun bloggy things. Back to your regularly scheduled programming...

REVIEW: Easy

Easy, by Tammara Webber
Published November 6, 2012
Publisher:  Berkley Trade
Format:  Paperback - own
Genre:  New Adult Contemporary Romance

Rating:  5 STARS

(From Goodreads) Rescued by a stranger.
Haunted by a secret
Sometimes, love isn’t easy…

He watched her, but never knew her. Until thanks to a chance encounter, he became her savior…

The attraction between them was undeniable. Yet the past he’d worked so hard to overcome, and the future she’d put so much faith in, threatened to tear them apart.

Only together could they fight the pain and guilt, face the truth—and find the unexpected power of love.

This new adult genre is really working for me. I admit - it's been awhile since I was in high school (don't ask how long - just trust me. It's been a while.). But, I do remember some of what it was like to be 17, and a lot of times the YA books soften the truth. Am I right? As much as we don't want to admit it - especially we mothers - high school kids swear. They have sex and go to parties. They make bad decisions and sometimes hate their parents. Not very romanticized, right?

NA books seem to get it right. Or, well, more right, anyway. EASY really took me back. The college picture painted by Webber's brush was so accurate. The way the characters acted, spoke, dressed - it was very representative of what it's really like. There's some language and some sex, and you know what? I prefer it that way. If all these characters were walking around in virginal white slinging "hecks" and "darns" when they got mad, I'd call a big B.S. on the whole thing.

Some of the situations these kids get into are really rough and intense. EASY is no different. What happens to Jacqueline in the beginning of the book is awful and scary, and there are really people out there who understand it all a little too much. Which sucks. 

But, I think what I liked most about this book is the very strong message of hope and strength. Webber took this really awful thing and wove a really good story around it. She introduced a knight in shining armor in Lucas and created in him a new kind of heroic book boyfriend. He's wonderful and chivalrous and has his own scars and problems to deal with too. Not every person out there who suffers in the way Jacqueline does will have a Lucas to save her or him. But, it's nice to read a book about one particular time when that knight shows up to make things better. 

I'm a total sucker for love stories where the love story doesn't always run smoothly. Where the love isn't instantaneous, but rather grows over time and experiences. All those elements were there, making EASY an easy read for me. I read it in a 24-hour time period. And, when I read the final page and closed the book, all I could do was sigh one of those sighs. You know - the girlie oh-that-was-so-romantic-and Lucas-was-so-wonderful-and-they-lived-happily-ever-after sighs. I don't usually do the girlie thing, but it was warranted in this case.