REVIEW: Live Wire (Nashville's Finest #1)

Live Wire (Nashville's Finest #1), by Caisey Quinn
Publish Date: March 7, 2017
Publisher: Intermix
Format: e-ARC, provided by the publisher
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 4.5 STARS

(Synopsis) HE’S NOT AFRAID OF ANYTHING… 

Explosive ordinance disposal specialist Chase Fisk never breaks a sweat defusing even the most complicated of explosives. So when a homicidal maniac threatens to set off military-grade IEDs during Nashville’s largest music festival, Chase is the man to take him down. But with the reappearance of a woman he thought was long dead, everything he thought he knew is blown away.

EXCEPT LOSING HER AGAIN.

FBI operative Vivien Montgomery is an enigma to everyone around her. So when a deadly threat lands her in Nashville and paired up with the only man she’s ever loved, she isn’t looking forward to an emotional reunion. She’s only here to get the job done and get out. But when the madman behind the chaos targets her for death, the one man she left behind might be the only person she can count on to save her life...

The story laid out in Live Wire was started in a novella that I read several months ago. It blew me away, especially the end when Vivien Montgomery was killed and her boyfriend Chase was left devastated by the loss. I remember reading the end and thinking, "That can't be it."

Thankfully, that was not it. 

Live Wire picks up four years later, as we learn that Vivien in fact did not die, but was taken in by the feds and put undercover to bring down some really bad people. When she was done her assignment, she was too afraid to go back to Chase in case he was so angry she lied to him he wouldn't speak to her. But now her hand is being forced and she is about to come face-to-face with the man she never stopped loving. And she has no idea how he's going to take it.

Needless to say, Chase doesn't take her return from the dead well. My heart absolutely broke for both of them. Chase was obviously feeling horribly betrayed because she never told him she was alive. Vivien is a mess because Chase is being so openly hostile toward her. I can understand both points of view. Neither Viven nor Chase are completely innocent of wrong. 

I knew that Vivien's return was going to be emotional, but I was surprised by all the feels. Caisey Quinn did a wonderful job connecting me with both main characters. I was right in the story with them as they tried to figure out a way to work together again amidst all their past baggage. 

To make matters even more complicated and stressful, there's someone after Vivien and Chase automatically steps in to protect her. Thankfully, they don't spend the entire book being hateful with one another, so there's still plenty of sexual chemistry and hot times between the sheets. 

We get to spend a bit more time with Chase's fellow bomb squad members and get to know them in advance of their own books coming out. I'm really loving what I'm seeing and can't wait to see what their stories will bring. Because this one? Chase and Vivian's story? It was pretty epic.   

REVIEW: Lit Fuse (Nashville's Finest #0.5)

Lit Fuse (Nashville's Finest #0.5), by Caisey Quinn
Publish Date: January 31, 2017
Publisher: Intermix
Format: e-ARC, provided by the publisher
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 5 STARS

(Synopsis) When Chase Fisk enrolled in the United States Army, it was mostly to escape a dead- end job working with his alcoholic father. The military provided him with a sense of belonging, and his brothers in arms became the family he never thought he’d have. He’s ready to embrace his promotion to Commanding Officer over a group of new explosive tech recruits—but he isn’t ready for her.

Vivian Brooks grew up in a military family and is unlike any woman Chase has ever met. The recently enlisted recruit is beautiful, tenacious, and as steady with her hands as any EOD technician he’s ever seen. She tempts him in every way possible, challenging him at all turns and taunting him with a body that haunts his waking moments and most of his sleeping ones. But as their forbidden romance could threaten their careers if it’s discovered, Vivian’s buried secrets threaten to destroy them both.

Holy. Smokes.

What an explosive beginning to this new series by Caisey Quinn. Seriously - it was ON FIRE. Okay. I'll stop. 

But, explosions definitely play a big part in Lit Fuse. Chase is a Corporal in the Army. He's an expert in bombs and explosives, and he's training a new class of recruits on how to not get blown up. Vivian is an Army brat who's all grown up and ready to make her own path. One steamy hook-up with a stranger, though, and she's questioning everything.

Chase Fisk could burn her alive and reduce her to ashes. He'd lit the fuse that night and now was a ticking time bomb waiting to detonate. Needing to explode. Soon. The blast wave could destroy them both, destroy their careers, their common sense. 

I can't even believe this was a novella. It didn't read like a novella. It didn't feel like one. Chase and Vivian's story was complicated and messy and had build-up and backstory and chemistry and sex. Lots of hot, hot sex. It was this delicious forbidden romance that had me on the edge of my seat the whole time, wondering if they were going to be found out. 

But, the craziest thing about Lit Fuse is that, you're thinking this whole time that the Chase and Vivian's story is going to be about one thing, and then at the very end, you realize that it's actually going to be about something completely different and totally unexpected. The cliffhanger ending will leave you breathless and wondering what in the heck is going on. And it will definitely leave you begging for the next book, which will be Chase and Vivian's full-length novel. 

If Lit Fuse is any indication of how Caisey Quinn's new series is going to go, it's sure to be completely amazing. 

BLOG TOUR REVIEW & GIVEAWAY: Missing Dixie (Neon Dreams #3)

This series - goodness, it may be one of my most favorite new adult series ever. Certainly one of the most angsty and emotional and... wonderful. Read on for more gushing, and then don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end.

Missing Dixie (Neon Dreams #3), by Caisey Quinn
Publish Date: October 27, 2015
Publisher: William Morrow
Format: e-galley, provided by the publisher via Edelweiss
Genre: new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating: 5 STARS

(From Goodreads) Fighting for redemption…

I've lived most of my life in darkness, beneath the shadows of secrets and addictions. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt the only girl I'd ever loved-the one who brought me into the light. In my entire life I'd made one promise-a promise I'd intended to keep. I've broken that promise and now I have to live with the fallout. Dixie Lark hates me, and I have to tell her that I love her. I also have to tell her a truth that might destroy us forever.

Can she love me even if she can't forgive me?

Learning to move on…

Gavin Garrison broke his promise to my brother and he broke my heart in the process. I may never love anyone the way I've loved him, but at least I won't spend my life wondering what if. We had our one night and he walked away. I'm finally beginning to move on when my brother's wedding and a battle of the bands brings us back together.

Our band is getting a second chance, but I don't know if I can give him one. How do you hand your heart back to the person who set it on fire once already?

This book - hell, this whole series - has been a total emotional rollercoaster. Of the very best kind, too. Despite the slight detour in book two, Loving Dallas, this story has been all about Dixie and Gavin. They are the heart and soul of their country rock band and the loves of each others' lives, but, gosh - it seemed as if these two just couldn't catch a break, you know? In book 1, they were fighting their attraction and chemistry because of an ancient promise Gavin made to Dixie's brother. Once the cat was out of the bag and that promise was negated, it seemed like the road should be clear for them to finally be together, right?

But, UGH. GAVIN.

Okay, first of all, I loved that MISSING DIXIE was told in dual POV. Leaving Amarillo (Neon Dreams #1) was not, so it was deliciously wonderful being inside Gavin's head for the first time. But, it was also totally frustrating, too. It was clear that this boy was totally gone over Dixie. He has been in love with her since they were kids and she would make sure he had enough to eat when his own mother didn't. The kind of love he felt for Dixie was huge and real and epic.

She's everything I ever wanted and the one thing I was never supposed to have. Now she's all I can think about. The scent of her, the taste of her, the feel of her.

It was these intense feelings that motivated Gavin to try and right all the wrongs in his life - mostly the wrongs that happened during the year Dixie spent away from him and Dallas when she was in college. The mysterious year that he won't tell her about, and yet, she wonders about constantly. But, in doing so, he keeps more secrets from her, and - boys, listen up - secrets KILL. They kill relationships and feelings and friendships, because the other person always finds out, and it's always much worse when it doesn't come from the source.

So, when Dixie finds out that Gavin has been around for months and hasn't contacted her, she's so upset. OF COURSE SHE IS. Especially when, the first time she sees him, he's got another woman hanging on his arm, and it's clear she knows him. And, all of a sudden, Dixie is just done. She's wasted most of her life loving this man who, she thinks, can and will never love her back.

Life is too short to spend it pining for someone who will never come around, wishing for something you will never have, and holding on to something or someone that doesn't want to be held.

And, Gavin, being the martyr that he is, decides to let her go. To let her continue to think things about him that just aren't entirely true. And, he does this mostly because he's scared that the real truth will be even worse for her.

Now, of course, at this point, I was ripping my hair out, yelling at both Dixie and Gavin to just get over it already! Never have I ever wanted two people to be together more than these two, and never has that seemed like such a remote possibility than in Missing Dixie. Dixie spends a lot of the book sad and angry at Gavin because of his secrets and his lies. Gavin spends a lot of the book sad and dejected because he wants Dixie so badly, but thinks that there's no way she will ever want him.

So, they ban together to try and give Dallas this one last thing - success for Leaving Amarillo - before parting, possibly for good. It forces them to have to be together in the same room, and to talk. All good things, because finally there seems to be hope. And sexy times, which were amazing. The chemistry between Gavin and Dixie has always been so volcanic. I love that they were friends long before they were lovers.

Rest assured - Gavin's secrets do come out, and wow. They are doozies. Thank goodness for my friends Kim from Kimberlyfaye Reads and Jen from Jenuine Cupcakes. They took the brunt of all my "OMGGGGGGG"s and "I just can't even..."s and "WTF just happened?!"s. Sorry, girls, for the extreme unloading of all my emo baggage. :)

I loved the ending. Gavin and Dixie, with the help of a new character, forge ahead and have somewhat of a non-traditional, yet no less awesome and happy, HEA. Dallas and Robyn are with them the whole way, so it was great that we kept up with their story even after their book was over. This rich, incredible story is going to stay with me for a long time to come.

Caisey Quinn lives in Nashville, Tennessee and is the bestselling author of the Kylie Ryans series and several other New Adult Romance titles. Her Neon Dreams series about a country rock crossover band paying their dues in life and in love on their rocky road to fame is now available from Avon/William Morrow.

Connect with Caisey:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCaiseyQuinn
Twitter: @caiseyquinn
Website: http://www.caiseyquinnwrites.com
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/CaiseyQuinn

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NEW ADULT MONDAYS: Loving Dallas (Neon Dreams #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.
  

Loving Dallas (Neon Dreams #2), by Caisey Quinn
Publish Date: June 16, 2015
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Format: e-book, purchased
Genre: new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating: 5 STARS

(From Goodreads) Dallas Lark is so close to achieving his dream of making it big in country music that he can taste it. Arriving in Nashville after signing with sexy, successful manager Mandy Lantram, his life goes from tragedy and turmoil to one lucky break after another—except it isn’t really luck because Dallas has sacrificed everything for his career, leaving behind his band, sister, best friend, and high school sweetheart, Robyn, in the pursuit of fame.

Robyn Breeland is a successful marketing coordinator and promotions specialist for a thriving liquor distributor out of Texas. She loves every aspect of her job: coming up with new ideas, traveling, hosting promotional parties and exclusive events—until it brings her face-to-face with the man who broke her heart, prompting her to erect a steel cage around it.

When their paths collide and they’re forced to work together, Dallas and Robyn realize that the old spark they thought they’d extinguished might still be a burning flame.

Loving Dallas was exactly what I needed in this rollercoaster of emotions that is the Neon Dreams series. The real angst and tears are with Gavin and Dixie, but Loving Dallas takes the focus off them and places it on Dixie's older brother Dallas as he goes off to seek fame and fortune alone.

After Leaving Amarillo's new manager convinces Dallas to go it alone, he becomes the opening act for one of the hottest country singers in the country on his new tour. Personally, I couldn't believe at first that Dallas was okay with leaving Dixie behind. And then, when Gavin reminds Dallas of why HE can't join him either, Dallas became a one-man act. Dallas was so caught up in the fact that he might actually achieve his dream of making it big that, for a time, he convinced himself that leaving his bandmates behind was a necessary evil. 

Handing over my boarding pass, I adjust the guitar on my back and take the first step toward a neon dream I've been chasing for as long as I can remember. 

Dallas' tour is being sponsored by a local liquor, and it just so happens that Dallas' old girlfriend Robyn works PR for them and is managing the tour. We met her in Leaving Amarillo, and we get the impression that she and Dallas were once very serious, but that he broke her heart for some reason. One thing is clear - it didn't end well between them. And, now they have to work together. 

Robyn tries really hard to keep Dallas at a distance. But, honestly, she stood no chance. The man is sex on a stick. And he can sing. As Dallas and Robyn get caught up in each other again, things get complicated... again. She shouldn't be fooling around with one of the tour participants. It's not professional behavior, and she could lose the job she loves. And, Robyn is not part of Dallas' Master Life Plan right now - being super famous and partaking in all the perks is. But there was a reason they were so good together in high school. And, that reason never went away. 

Robyn and Dallas were so good together, too. I loved their relationship and their chemistry. I love that Robyn remained friends with Dixie even after Dallas dumped her, and now Robyn uses Dixie as her sounding board. And, I love that even two people as close as Dallas and Robyn were still had secrets. I mean, the secrets weren't the part I loved - the spilling of them was. It cleared things up for both Dallas and Robyn as to why they broke up in the first place. And it helped clarify things in the present as well. 

As I mentioned - the focus during Loving Dallas was not on Gavin and Dixie. Dallas' and Robyn's story was a lot lighter, so it gave the reader a bit of a break from all the heartache. A much needed break. Especially if you decide to binge read the series like I did. At the end, the focus returns to Dixie and Gavin and whether there is a future for Leaving Amarillo, but the future of Dallas and Robyn is at least decided. 

Admittedly, I was so wrapped up in Dixie and Gavin that, when I realized they weren't going to be around much in Loving Dallas, I was pretty bummed out. But, I got over that very quickly as I got caught up in what was happening with Dallas and Robyn. It was easy to do. It's wonderfully written. It's a poignant, yet exciting, second chance love story, and I loved every minute of it. 

NEW ADULT MONDAYS: Leaving Amarillo (Neon Dreams #1)

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.

Leaving Amarillo (Neon Dreams #1), by Caisey Quinn
Publish Date: March 17, 2015
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Format: e-book, gifted
Genre: new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble
 
Rating: 5 STARS

(From Goodreads) Dixie Lark hasn’t had it easy. She lost her parents in an accident when she was young and grew up in a ramshackle house on a dirt road in Amarillo with her ailing grandparents and overprotective older brother. Thanks to her grandfather, Dixie learned to play a mean fiddle, inspired by the sounds of the greats—Johnny and June, Waylon, and Hank. Her grandfather’s fiddle changed Dixie’s life forever, giving her an outlet for the turmoil of her broken heart and inspiring a daring dream.

Ten years later, Dixie and her brother, Dallas, are creating the music they love and chasing fame with their hot band, Leaving Amarillo. But Dixie isn’t enjoying the ride. All she can think about is Gavin, the band’s tattooed, tortured drummer who she’s loved since they were kids. She knows he feels the connection between them, but he refuses see her as more than his best friend’s little sister.

Convinced that one night with Gavin will get him out of her system, Dixie devises a plan. She doesn’t know that her brother has forbidden Gavin from making a move on her-a promise he swore he’d always keep . . . a promise that once broken will unexpectedly change the future for Dixie, Gavin and the band.

I'll admit - at first glance, I passed on Leaving Amarillo. I'm not a country music fan, so I wasn't sure I would be able to get into a book about a country band trying to make it big. And, then in April I met Caisey Quinn, and she was really cool. And yet, I still balked. But, then I started seeing other blogger friends absolutely RAVING about it, so I finally added it to my wishlist, and my OTSP Secret Sister, whoever that sweet gem is, bought it for me. 

Despite my lack of enthusiasm for country music, I was immediately grabbed by the story. First of all, the main character, Dixie, plays the violin. (I played the violin for 10 years.) And, second of all, Caisey Quinn brings you to the main point of the story immediately, and it's not country music. 

Dixie is in love with her band mate and her brother's best friend Gavin, and she has been for a long time. Her brother, and band front man, Dallas, is definitively against them being together. He knows Gavin's past and doesn't think he's good enough for his baby sister. But, Dixie's suffered in silence long enough and decides to lay it all out there for Gavin and tell him how she feels. 

And, my goodness - that took some serious guts. To put yourself out there and not know how it will go - especially when the person you're spilling your guts to is your best friend in the whole world, and you're in a band together and have to see each other all the time. Yeah. I give mad props to Dixie. She's is so incredibly strong and brave. I would've never been able to come clean to Gavin and tell him how I felt like that. 

Most of us have experienced unrequited or forbidden love in our lives. It sucks. A lot. It's heartbreaking. And I felt ALL OF IT. Caisey Quinn is such an incredible writer. As Dixie was sifting through her feelings about Gavin both internally and as she poured her heart out to him, I felt SO MUCH, and it stayed with me for days afterward.

And, after it all, Dixie gets Gavin to agree to spend one night with her. She thinks that's all she'll ever have, and is hoping that she'll get enough good memories to exist on for the rest of her life, because she knows that without even a kiss or a touch from him, Gavin has already ruined her for all other men. That night - holeeeee crap. It was so incredibly hot. I might've read that section of the book three times in a row. Maybe four. 

Now, I know I said this book wasn't about country music, but it did serve as the backdrop. And, trust me when I say, you don't have to love country in order to appreciate this book. Dallas, Dixie and Gavin's band, Leaving Amarillo, is playing at a big festival, hoping to be noticed by producers or an agent. For all three of them, this band and each other are everything. We get the story entirely from Dixie's POV, so we go through the book knowing that playing in this band and being with Gavin are really the only two things that Dixie wants in the whole world. 

So, we spend the entire book wondering if Leaving Amarillo will hit it big and get noticed by someone important, and if, along the way, Dixie and Gavin can figure out their stuff enough to be together without fear of Dallas or of the consequences to the band. Throughout the course of the book, Dixie grows up a lot. She experiences a lot of hurts from a lot of different sources, and she deals with all of them as best as she can, given her youth. Some things she handles better than others, but all of her reactions were organic and realistic and so steeped in emotion. 

Nothing is resolved by the end of the book. In fact, only more questions are presented. What happened to Gavin during the year Dixie spent in college? Will Dixie really never play in Leaving Amarillo again? What are Gavin's plans to make Dixie his for good? And, when he gets around to implementing them, will she still want him? It's these questions, and more, that drove me on to book #2, Loving Dallas, immediately after finishing Leaving Amarillo. And, it took only this one book to solidify this series as one of my favorite new adult series ever.