Susan Mallery Foolproof Bridal Kit Giveaway

"Three Little Words"
by Susan Mallery

Publisher: Harlequin HQN
Release Date: July 30, 2013
Source: sent by publisher

Summary from goodreads.com:

Can first love turn into the real deal in a sizzling new Fool's Gold story from New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery? Isabel Beebe thinks she's cursed in the romance department. Her teenage crush, Ford Hendrix, ignored all her letters. Her husband left her for another...man. So Isabel has come home to dust off her passion for fashion and run the family bridal shop until her parents are ready to sell it. Then she'll pursue her real dreams. At least, that's the plan, until sexy, charming Ford returns and leaves her feeling fourteen all over again....

Seeing Isabel all grown up hits bodyguard trainer Ford like a sucker punch. Back when heartbreak made him join the military, her sweet letters kept him sane. Now he can't take his eyes-or his lips-off her. The man who gave up on love has a reason to stay in Fool's Gold forever-if three little words can convince Isabel to do the same...

Susan Mallery Foolproof Bridal Kit Giveaway!

One lucky In the Hammock reader will win a prize pack valued at over $40, including the following items:

The Susan Mallery Foolproof Bridal Kit includes:

• A wedding-themed bottle of OPI nail polish
• Not Your Mother’s® Rise & Shine™ Silky Smooth Shine Mist
• Manicure set (includes emery board, small and large nail clippers, tweezers, cuticle stick and nail polish remover pad)
• Heart-shaped compact mirror
• 12-piece E.L.F. eye shadow kit
• Travel makeup brush set
• Makeup remover wipes
• Lip gloss
• Travel sewing kit
• Kleenex®
• Secret® deodorant
• Razor and Gillette® Shave Gel
• Nivea Creme
• Wisps toothbrushes
• TRESemmé® hairspray

Follow along with the rest of the tour at BookTrib and enter more contests along the way!

http://blogtoureditors.booktrib.com/2013/07/29/blog-tour-three-little-words-by-susan-mallery/

GIVEAWAY RULES

The publicist has generously provided a prize pack for a lucky reader of my blog.

All you have to do is fill out the Rafflecopter form below.

• US only
• Prizes will be mailed out by the publicist
• Must be 18 or over 

• Ends Aug 22

Thanks to everyone for entering! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a copy of the book in exchange for this post.

"Faking It" Review

"Faking It'"
by Cora Carmack

Publisher: William Morrow

Release Date: June 4, 2013
Source: sent by publisher

My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

Summary from goodreads.com:

Mackenzie “Max” Miller has a problem. Her parents have arrived in town for a surprise visit, and if they see her dyed hair, tattoos, and piercings, they just might disown her. Even worse, they’re expecting to meet a nice, wholesome boyfriend, not a guy named Mace who has a neck tattoo and plays in a band. All her lies are about to come crashing down around her, but then she meets Cade.

Cade moved to Philadelphia to act and to leave his problems behind in Texas. So far though, he’s kept the problems and had very little opportunity to take the stage. When Max approaches him in a coffee shop with a crazy request to pretend to be her boyfriend, he agrees to play the part. But when Cade plays the role a little too well, they’re forced to keep the ruse going. And the more they fake the relationship, the more real it begins to feel.

My Review:

This was my first "NA" or New Adult book, and I'm glad that I tried this book before others from the genre. The genre seems to have a reputation as all sex and no substance, but I would definitely say this book does not fall into that trap at all. The cover makes the book seem a lot steamier than it really is. Actually, the book is steamy, but in little ways, not over the top bedroom scenes on every page. The main characters have a lot of chemistry, and the author shows it through unexpected things like hands touching on accident, etc.

Don't get me wrong, this is an adult book with adult themes, it's not YA. There's even a pretty violent street brawl. I'm just glad that it was done in a real way, nothing was over the top for shock value.

Another stereotype that seems to be prevalent in NA is the 'bad boy' syndrome. In this book, the hero is the complete opposite of a bad boy! Which I couldn't be happier about. Max even calls Cade "Golden Boy" because he is so perfect.

There were a few drawbacks to the book, but no deal breakers for me. I didn't think that Mace was a great addition to the story. We knew they were just a fling, so he didn't really seem like a valid obstacle for Max and Cade to get together. Also, the angsty-ness at the end seemed to drag on a bit long.

Otherwise, this is a well-written look at New Adult. I think the genre could be a great thing that readers in the target age group could really enjoy reading. But only if there are more books like this, with great characters, great storylines, and two people trying to have a healthy relationship.

Main Characters: 5/5
Supporting Characters: 4/5
Setting: 4/5
Romance: 5/5
Uniqueness: 5/5
Cover: 3/5 ( I wouldn't pick it up based on the cover)
Writing: 5/5

Bottom Line: I was hesitant to try the book because I wasn't sure about the genre, but all of my negative assumptions were proven wrong. This is a great New Adult romance.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Waiting on Wednesday 238

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose:

"Jessica Darling's It List"
by Megan McCafferty
Poppy
Release Date: Sep 3, 2013

The following description is from goodreads.com:

Move over, Dork Diaries! Jessica Darling, star of Megan McCafferty's bestselling Jessica Darling series for adults, is back in a hilarious new series perfect for tween (10 to 14) girls.

I hadn't even gotten to homeroom yet and I'd already discovered five hard truths about junior high:

1. My best friend had turned pretty.
2. She didn't know it yet.
3. It wouldn't be long before she did.
4. That knowledge would change everything between us.
5. And there wasn't a thing I could do about it.

It's the first day of seventh grade. Is Jessica Darling doomed for dorkdom?

New York Times bestselling author Megan McCafferty's hilarious series opener will have you laughing, cringing, and cheering for Jessica Darling as she learns that being herself beats being popular, pretty & perfect any day.

Jessica Darling is back?? Yes, I'm in! This time the books are for tweens, so they will definitely be different, but I'm ready to revisit Jessica!

What are you waiting for this week???

Waiting on Wednesday 237

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose:

"Scorched"
by Mari Mancusi
Sourcebooks Fire
Release Date: Sep 3, 2013

The following description is from goodreads.com:

Trinity
Don't leave me here... It starts with a whisper. At first Trinity thinks she's going crazy. It wouldn't be a big surprise--her grandpa firmly believes there's a genuine dragon egg in their dusty little West Texas town. But this voice is real, and it's begging for her protection. Even if no one else can hear it...

Connor
He's come from a future scorched by dragonfire. His mission: Find the girl. Destroy the egg. Save the world.

Caleb
He's everything his twin brother Connor hates: cocky, undisciplined, and obsessed with saving dragons.

Trinity has no idea which brother to believe. All she has to go by is the voice in her head--a dragon that won't be tamed.

Oooh, dragons!! Need I say anything else! I love the cover so much, I need to read it now!

What are you waiting for this week???

Sunday Shout Out 38

Recently, I introduced a new feature here at In the Hammock on Sundays. It's called "Sunday Shout Out" and it's a place where I can give a special shout out to those publishers and authors who have sent me books over the week, as well as those bloggers who have hosted contests that I've won! I'll also be giving shout outs to any other cool books, blogs or bookish news that I've spotted during the week.

For Review

"The Passion of the Purple Plumeria"  by Lauren Willig

"Lady Jenny's Christmas Portrait" by Grace Burrowes

"Little Red Writing" by Joan Holub

  

Contest Wins

"Crescent" by Homer Hickam

Won from YA Bound

Waiting on Wednesday 237

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it is a way to show off the books you can't wait to be released!!

This week I chose:

"Of Beast and Beauty"
by Stacey Jay
Delacorte
Release Date: July 23, 2013

The following description is from goodreads.com:

In the beginning was the darkness, and in the darkness was a girl, and in the girl was a secret...

In the domed city of Yuan, the blind Princess Isra, a Smooth Skin, is raised to be a human sacrifice whose death will ensure her city’s vitality. In the desert outside Yuan, Gem, a mutant beast, fights to save his people, the Monstrous, from starvation. Neither dreams that together, they could return balance to both their worlds.

Isra wants to help the city’s Banished people, second-class citizens despised for possessing Monstrous traits. But after she enlists the aid of her prisoner, Gem, who has been captured while trying to steal Yuan’s enchanted roses, she begins to care for him, and to question everything she has been brought up to believe.

As secrets are revealed and Isra’s sight, which vanished during her childhood, returned, Isra will have to choose between duty to her people and the beast she has come to love.

Sounds like a new take on this fairy tale! And, there's not long to wait!

What are you waiting for this week???

Extra 40% Off Sale Items at Tea Collection

Fabulous sale alert! Starting, June 30 through Sunday, July 7, Tea Collection is offering an additional 40% off sale items with promo code SAVE40. Stock up on comfortable and durable clothes for the new school year or the next family vacation. Don't miss your chance to take advantage of this amazing sale from Tea Collection! Happy Shopping! 


Here are just a few of my favorites from Tea Collection's sale.


Tea Collection Rosebud Ruffled Mini Dress


Tea Collection Zebra Stripe Flutter Dress


Tea Collection Durban Beach Peplum Romper


Tea Collection Venda Fish Polo


Tea Collection Racing Cheetah Tee


Tea Collection has adorable and unique clothes for babies, girls, boys, and women, too!


Disclosure: This is a sponsored post with affiliate links.

"The Magic of 'I Do'" Review

"The Magic of 'I Do'"
by Tammy Falkner

Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Release Date: June 4, 2013
Source: sent by publisher

My Rating: 3 of 5 Stars

Summary from goodreads.com:

Claire Thorne is a faerie on a mission. When the governing body of her world puts a prohibition on magic, she escapes to the human world and straight into the arms of Lord Phineas Tremble. When he insists on being her crime-solving partner, she does everything she can to get rid of him—until she realizes his gift for smooth talking might come in handy when tracking down a killer. Before long, Finn has his hands full keeping Claire out of trouble, because the two of them together create more sparks than her faerie dust ever could...

My Review:

I really wanted to like this book, but sadly it wasn't the story for me. I LOVE the most recent books from writing team, Lydia Dare, and I was so excited to try a book from one of the members of that writing team. Unfortunately, this book had none of the magic of Dare's books.

I didn't read the first book in the series, "A Lady and Her Magic", and I didn't feel like there was a proper introduction to the action at the beginning of the book. I felt bewildered and lost since I didn't read the previous book. There wasn't any explanation of what was going on, the reader is just plopped down in the middle of the action. In fact, I really got off on the wrong foot because I was picturing Finn as a creepy kidnapper instead of romantic hero and I never quite got over that initial image of him.

Everything just happened way too fast for me. There was very little character or story development. I honestly couldn't believe how fast these two jumped into bed together. They had barely met, and in terrible circumstances where they didn't even like each other (at least that's how it happened in this book, maybe they had more of a backstory in the first book). The story just seemed disjointed and a lot of the development was missing.

Main Characters: 3/5
Supporting Characters: 3/5
Setting: 3/5
Romance: 2/5
Uniqueness: 4/5
Cover: 4/5
Writing: 3/5

Bottom Line: While I still love Lydia Dare's books, this solo effort wasn't polished enough for me.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.