RELEASE DAY LAUNCH: Opposition (Lux #5)

After nearly a year of waiting (not so patiently - in fact, as you read this, I'm probably resisting the urge to obsessively track my Amazon package by the minute), I am so excited that the release day for the final Lux book, OPPOSITION, is finally here! A huge thank you goes to Inkslinger PR for organizing this launch event and Jennifer L. Armentrout for hooking us up - they've provided a deliciously angsty excerpt and a crazy awesome giveaway in honor of Opposition's release.

Opposition (Lux #5), by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Published August 5, 2014
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Genre: young adult paranormal
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

(From Goodreads) Katy knows the world changed the night the Luxen came.

She can't believe Daemon welcomed his race or stood by as his kind threatened to obliterate every last human and hybrid on Earth. But the lines between good and bad have blurred, and love has become an emotion that could destroy her—could destroy them all.

Daemon will do anything to save those he loves, even if it means betrayal.

They must team with an unlikely enemy if there is any chance of surviving the invasion. But when it quickly becomes impossible to tell friend from foe, and the world is crumbling around them, they may lose everything— even what they cherish most—to ensure the survival of their friends…and mankind.

War has come to Earth. And no matter the outcome, the future will never be the same for those left standing.

Excerpt

Katy

I still stared at Daemon, completely aware that everyone else except him was watching me. Closely. But why wouldn’t he look at me? A razor-sharp panic clawed at my insides. No. This couldn’t be happening. No way.
 My body was moving before I even knew what I was doing.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Dee shake her head and one of the Luxen males step forward, but I was propelled by an inherent need to prove that my worst fears were not coming true.

After all, he’d healed me, but then I thought of what Dee had said, of how Dee had behaved with me. What if Daemon was like her? Turned into something so foreign and cold? He would’ve healed me just to make sure he was okay.

I still didn’t stop.
 Please, I thought over and over again. Please. Please. Please. On shaky legs, I crossed the long room, and even though Daemon hadn’t seemed to even acknowledge my existence, I walked right up to him, my hands trembling as I placed them on his chest.

 “Daemon?” I whispered, voice thick.

His head whipped around, and he was suddenly staring down at me. Our gazes collided once more, and for a second I saw something so raw, so painful in those beautiful eyes. And then his large hands wrapped around my upper arms. The contact seared through the shirt I wore, branding my skin, and I thought—I expected—that he would pull me against him, that he would embrace me, and even though nothing would be all right, it would be better.

Daemon’s hands spasmed around my arms, and I sucked in an unsteady breath.

His eyes flashed an intense green as he physically lifted me away from him, setting me back down a good foot back.

I stared at him, something deep in my chest cracking. “Daemon?”

He said nothing as he let go, one finger at a time, it seemed, and his hands slid off my arms. He stepped back, returning his attention to the man behind the desk.

“So . . . awkward,” murmured the redhead, smirking.

I was rooted to the spot in which I stood, the sting of rejection burning through my skin, shredding my insides like I was nothing more than papier-mâché.

“I think someone was expecting more of a reunion,” the Luxen male behind the desk said, his voice ringing with amusement. “What do you think, Daemon?”

One shoulder rose in a negligent shrug. “I don’t think anything.”

My mouth opened, but there were no words. His voice, his tone, wasn’t like his sister’s, but like it had been when we first met. He used to speak to me with barely leashed annoyance, where a thin veil of tolerance dripped from every word. The rift in my chest deepened.
 For the hundredth time since the Luxen arrived, Sergeant Dasher’s warning came back to me. What side would Daemon and his family stand on? A shudder worked its way down my spine. I wrapped my arms around myself, unable to truly process what had just happened.

“And you?” the man asked. When no one answered, he tried again. “Katy?”

I was forced to look at him, and I wanted to shrink back from his stare. “What?” I was beyond caring that my voice broke on that one word.

The man smiled as he walked around the desk. My gaze flickered over to Daemon as he shifted, drawing the attention of the beautiful redhead. “Were you expecting a more personal greeting?” he asked. “Perhaps something more intimate?”

I had no idea how to answer. I felt like I’d fallen into the rabbit hole, and warnings were firing off left and right. Something primal inside me recognized that I was surrounded by predators.

Completely.

Giveaway

InkslingerPR and Jennifer L. Armentrout are giving away a Lux Series Basket with Lux themed jewelry, a signed set of the Lux Series and a $50 gift card to a retailer of the winner’s choice (Amazon, Barnes&Noble, or Indiebound).

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author 

# 1 NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV.

She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins. 

BLOG TOUR REVIEW: Lead (Stage Dive #3)

Lead (Stage Dive #3), by Kylie Scott
Published July 29, 2014
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Format: e-book, purchased
Genre: new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble
 
Rating: 4 STARS

(From Goodreads) As the lead singer of Stage Dive, Jimmy is used to getting whatever he wants, whenever he wants it, whether it's booze, drugs, or women. However, when a PR disaster serves as a wake-up call about his life and lands him in rehab, he finds himself with Lena, a new assistant to keep him out of trouble.

Lena's not willing to take any crap from the sexy rocker and is determined to keep their relationship completely professional, despite their sizzling chemistry. But when Jimmy pushes her too far and Lena leaves, he realizes that he may just have lost the best thing that ever happened to him.

Jimmy, lead singer for the rock band Stage Dive, has been a mysterious enigma since we met him in Lick (Stage Dive #1). In that book, he was a hot mess (emphasis on HOT). It was obvious that substance abuse was an every day hobby for him. Because of it and a whole lot of hurt in his past, Jimmy was a veritable asshat who treated everyone around him horribly. At the end of book 1, Jimmy made the choice to go to rehab and get clean once and for all. 

To help him with that journey, he hires Lena to be a live-in sobriety counselor/assistant/secretary. Lena is escaping her own family problems when the job falls in her lap. She is a super strong woman who takes crap from no one - not even smoking hot rock stars, which is why she was kind of perfect for the job of dealing with a rich, broody, recovering addict. And, for awhile, even though she and Jimmy were living in the same house, Lena was able to keep the lines between her job and her personal life clearly defined. 

Then, someone close to Jimmy dies and he needs more than an assistant. He needs a real friend, and Lena is the closest person he has to one. That one event completely veered their relationship off course, at least for Lena. She starts feeling things for Jimmy, no matter how hard she tried not to. So, she tries to nip it in the bud and quit before things get out of hand. Jimmy, however, has grown used to her company and refuses to let her go, convincing Lena that he can make it so she doesn't like him like that anymore. His efforts, though, seem to push her in the opposite direction, and soon Lena has fallen in love with Jimmy. 

I spent a lot of time while reading Lead yelling at my Kindle. Literally. Yelling. Jimmy and Lena were both completely infuriating, but for different reasons. I expected Jimmy to be a difficult jerk. I would've liked it better if he had consistently acted that way. However, Jimmy would have these moments that completely endeared me to him. He would do or say something to Lena that was so sweet, or he and Lena would snark back and forth and I would laugh and think they were perfect together. 

And, then in the next moment, he would insult her or be completely insensitive. When Lena would express her feelings to him - especially how she felt for him - he would blow her off and make light of them. It made me feel so badly for Lena. It seemed to break her heart a little more every time that Jimmy crapped all over her wants and desires. 

On Lena's side, she seemed to handle Jimmy well most of the time, but there were many times when I wished she would've just stood up for herself more. It seemed that Jimmy and the rest of the band used guilt to make her stick around, saying that Jimmy would fall off the wagon if Lena really quit. And of course because she loved him and wanted to see him succeed in his sobriety, she fell for it every time. Jimmy would invade her personal space, horn in on her personal life, and force her to do things she didn't really want to do, and Lena would sit back and take it every. single. time. Just once, I wanted her to really put her foot down and say NO. And stick to it!

Lead was a bit atypical from most new adult books I read, in that, at 60% through the book, Jimmy and Lena hadn't even kissed yet, much less anything more. There were times between them that the sexual tension was there, but most of the time, it was the possibility of more between them that drove me onward. I just knew there had to be a breaking point where Jimmy would finally give in and deem himself worthy of receiving and giving love, and I knew when that happened it would be good. 

And, yes, it was good. When Jimmy and Lena finally - FINALLY - came together in every sense of the word, it was explosive and everything I had been waiting for. I loved it and everything that came after it. Of course things don't run smoothly between them after that. You can't fix someone like Jimmy that fast. But, Lena finally locates her backbone, and it turns out it was exactly what Jimmy really needed from her. 

One of the best things about the Stage Dive series is that, since the four guys in this group are so close and spend so much time together, we always know what the couples from previous books are up to. There was a lot of David and Ev and Mal and Anne. We get a hint of things to come from Ben (and, I'm guessing, Lizzy, Anne's sister). 

I loved getting to the heart of Jimmy, since he's the lead of the band. Lead was a great story and the ending was amazing. I can't wait to see what's in store for Ben next. 

About the Author

Kylie is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and one delightful husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the internet.

Learn more about Kylie --> Website | Twitter | Facebook | Amazon Author Page | Goodreads

 







Giveaway

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REVIEW: Beauty and the Billionaire (Billionaire Boys Club #2)

Beauty and the Billionaire (Billionaire Boys Club #2), by Jessica Clare
Published July 26, 2013
Publisher: Berkley Intermix
Format: e-book, purchased
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble
 
Rating: 4.5 STARS

(From Goodreads) The Billionaire Boys Club is a secret society of six men who have vowed success—at any cost. Not all of them are old money, but all of them are incredibly wealthy. They’re just not always as successful when it comes to love…

Real-estate tycoon Hunter Buchanan has a dark past that’s left him scarred and living as a recluse on his family’s palatial estate. Hunter is ready to give up on love—until he spots an enigmatic red-haired beauty and comes up with an elaborate scheme to meet her.

Gretchen Petty is in need of a paycheck—and a change. So when a job opportunity in an upstate New York mansion pops up she accepts. And while she can overlook the oddities of her new job, she can’t ignore her new boss’s delectable body—or his barely leashed temper.

Hunter’s afraid his plan might be unraveling before it’s truly begun, but Gretchen is about to show him that life can be full of surprises…

My friends at Penguin were kind enough to send me a copy of Stranded With a Billionaire (Billionaire Boys Club #1) a few months ago (read my review here). I knew I would like it, but I had no idea I would LOVE these boys! I knew right away that there was no option except to buy all the remaining books in the series. Of them all, the one I was most looking forward to reading, though, was Hunter's story in Beauty and the Billionaire. It did not disappoint.

Hunter Buchanan is a recluse who hides away from everyone except for his closest friends because of the scarring on his face. He thinks no one could possibly love him, so he spares himself the embarrassment. Gretchen is a creative woman with a free and open spirit. When Hunter sees her, he thinks maybe she could open herself up enough to the possibility of being friends with someone like him. He didn't bank on the fact that Gretchen couldn't care less about his appearance. It's his heart and soul she cares about. But, when she finds out he brought her to his house under false pretenses, it may be what causes her to walk away.

Okay - I'll be straight with you. There were a few things in Beauty and the Billionaire that were pretty far fetched. The elaborate plan that Hunter hatched to bring Gretchen into his house was kinda nuts. The fact that she bought it and went along with the crazy plan was even nuttier. 

But, the craziest thing of all was that I really didn't care. 

It was absolutely impossible to not love Hunter. He was so sad and dejected and had pretty much given up on any chance at happiness. People outside of those who already knew and cared about him treated him badly because of the scarring on his face. When Gretchen initially reaches out to him, despite his intense yearning to know her, he lashes out at her, inadvertently pushing her away. I felt so badly for him and wanted nothing more than for he and Gretchen to find their way to each other.

Gretchen is a ghost writer stuck writing books she hates just so she can pay the bills. In order to get him in her house, Hunter creates a publishing company and tells them to employ her to write a book based on a trunk of 100-year-old love letters that Hunter passes off as coming with the house, but really, he just bought them at an estate sale. It makes me sad that Hunter had to go to such extreme lengths just to get Gretchen to spend time with him - that he didn't have enough faith in her to want to hang out with him on his merits alone. 

Gretchen, as it turns out, is exactly what Hunter needed. She's a take charge kind of girl who isn't content to just allow Hunter to continue to hide. She draws him out slowly. He's uncomfortable at first, but Gretchen has a way of putting him at ease. The transformation of Hunter is sweet and just makes me feel all girly and touchy feely. It was just what I needed when I was looking for a feel-good read.

Just because the romance was sweet doesn't mean it was sweet all the time. Beauty and the Billionaire was super hot too. The heat between Hunter and Gretchen was scorching. And there was plenty of time for angst too. Things don't always go smoothly. Old habits die hard for Hunter, and when he reverts back to his suspicious nature and doesn't trust Gretchen or her feelings for him, he has to answer for that. 

The title of the book is no coincidence. This really was Beauty and the Beast told with a modern non-paranormal spin. Hunter is the beast who has hidden himself away from the world in his huge mansion because of his shame. He is also an expert when it comes to roses. Gretchen is the sweet beauty who accepts him unquestionably because she sees the goodness underneath the rough exterior. She is eager to draw him out of his shell and show him all the wonderful things he is missing. And, she likes books. She is Belle through and through. 

I am so excited to continue with this series. The romances are wonderful. The sex is hot and the happily ever afters make my toes curl. These are books I could read any time, any where.