mignon mykel { reviews }: review || THE SECRET CRUSH { release day } by Sarah M. Ross

Monday, October 19, 2015

review || THE SECRET CRUSH { release day } by Sarah M. Ross

We are absolutely thrilled to bring you the Release Day Launch for THE SECRET CRUSH by Sarah M. Ross! THE SECRET CRUSH is a sweet romantic novella perfect for those chilly fall nights! This title is only available on Amazon as it is in Kindle Unlimited. Grab your copy of THE SECRET CRUSH for $.99 today!

Self-Published | October 19, 2015 | New Adult
★★★★

SOURCE: INSKLINGER PR

I’ve been in love with Hadley Monroe for three years. Over a thousand days.

But Hadley doesn’t see me. Not the real me, anyway.

It’s time to change all that.

I need to show her—convince her—that we could be more than friends. That we are actually perfect for each other.

It’s time to put it all out there. Risk everything before it’s too late.

It’s time for a grand gesture.

It’s time to reveal that I’m her Secret Crush.

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{ about sarah m. ross } .

Sarah started her obsession with reading at an early age, often sneaking BabySitter Club and Nancy Drew books into math class. She would read any book she could get her hands on. Her love of reading quickly evolved into a love of writing and stories began to pour out of her. She grew up in Pittsburgh, graduated from The University of Pittsburgh with a degree in English, and taught 8th graders to love reading as much as she does for several years. Sarah will always be a proud member of the Steelers' Nation, but couldn't take the cold and moved her frozen tush to Florida where she now lives with her family and two cats. You will find her now with her trusty Kindle in hand and toes in the sand! Sarah's debut novel, AWAKEN, released in January, 2012. Other novels include AVENGE, ATONE, ECHO OF AN EARTH ANGEL, and INHALE EXHALE.

Website | Twitter| Facebook | Author Goodreads

{ excerpt } .

My head tilted back, and I leaned on his chest. His thumb continued, now sliding up and down my forefinger. Tiny swipes back and forth, each one like a flame licking my hot skin. My fingers tingled with the need to touch him back, but I couldn’t move. All the noise from the other rooms seemed to fade away as he held me there. And even though I didn’t know who he was, I felt at home in his arms. Like it was where I belonged.

“Close your eyes, Hadley.” My eyes slid shut upon his command. “No peeking.”

I nodded, keeping my eyes tightly shut as he spun me around, facing him. My lips parted slightly as he reached up and cupped my face in his hands. I held my breath, anticipating whatever he was going to do next. My pulse raced as the seconds ticked by. God I hope he kisses me, I prayed.

“I want you to do something for me, Hadley.”

“Okay,” I murmured.

“When everything is over tonight. When the last guest has gone home and the lights are all out. When you’re back in your dorm and the world is quiet, I want you to glance out your window and look out at the stars. At how brightly they shine down from millions of miles away. And then I want you to remember what I’m telling you right now.”

He moved his face against mine, his breath like a warm caress against my cheek. “You, Hadley, shine brighter than them all. You radiate beauty and warmth and passion and determination. You put them to shame, Hadley.”

I sucked in a breath as tears pooled at his beautiful words. And just then, when I was filled to the brim with so much emotion I could explode, his lips came down on mine.

I sighed in contentment as his warm and soft lips pressed against my own with the briefest of kisses, leaving me craving more.

But before I could even flutter my eyes open, he was gone.

{ review } .

This was a cutely done new adult romance, leaving the reader guessing throughout the story who, exactly, 'secret crush' was. And the real kicker? For whatever reason, I didn't even realize 'secret crush' was not given a name outside of, well... 'secret crush'. Maybe that's because of my epilogue problem, but... Anyway. Don't be me. Don't be an epilogue reader.

I enjoyed the dual point of views, one being Hadley's and the other being 'secret crush'. We were able to experience life and the guessing Hadley goes through, in her own eyes, but we also watched as 'secret crush' tried to make his way into Hadley's life.

Sarah's writing style is easy to follow and get lost in; having read a previous title of hers, NEVER GONNA TELL, I wasn't sure how I'd feel about this read. I have to say, I enjoyed it much more, and wish it were longer.

{ giveaway } .

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a quick note from { mignon } ...

I AM NO LONGER ACTIVE IN REVIEWING

The last two years has been incredibly rewarding, giving me the opportunity to pick up new-to-me authors, as well as new-to-the-world authors. I have enjoyed supporting publishing houses as well as the indie author, and in doing so, I learned a lot about the marketing aspect of writing a book and selling it as a self-published author.

I have re-focused my journey to more writing-minded. I still read and review! But not nearly at the rate I was; three books a day has turned to three books a month.

I will no longer be accepting individual review requests (unless it's specifically author-to-author, then it will be highly considered).

I will definitely be posting reviews for commitments I have already made, though.

Thank you for understanding, & thank you to all those I have worked with over the last year plus!

~ Mignon

http://mignonmykel.com

GOODREADS updates

Dirty Saint: A Secret Baby Sports Romance by Vesper Vaughn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book almost failed to get my attention. Why?

The hero.

He is the exact public person I despise. You know the type -- all biblical with publicized praying and verses all over his public persona. Great. Good for you. Bet you're not like that behind closed doors...

Which is exactly what Esther thinks of him.

Saint and Esther attend the same super religious college. Esther is on the fast track to becoming a nun, and no I do not kid, and Saint, given name Francis, can do just about whatever he wants, because he is the star athlete and the school knows he has connections. What in the world can these two have in common? The actions of their parents.

But where Saint does what his father says, usually, because his father is pushing him toward a pro-football careers, Esther follows her parents (father) because if she didn't... Her life would literally be a living hell.

I really enjoyed these two, once we started to get to know Saint a little bit better. My only drawback with the book would be the last half goes by in super-fast time. While it helped to keep the story moving, I would have liked to see more of that time drawn out so the feelings and emotions of our two characters felt more genuine and real -- rather than simply a two month courting that their lives demanded.

I'm giving the book the full 5 stars because it came out of left-field for me. It was a book that I didn't expect to like, but the author wove it in a way that I fell hard for our characters both as individuals and as a couple. I liked watching Esther grow and find her voice in life, just as I liked watching playboy, always for the chase Saint, settle down and find a person to be terribly protective over. I loved him most in the last two chapters.

*ARC received in exchange for an honest review

Everything by Erin Noelle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Here's something you may know about me if you've followed my reviews -- I'm an epilogue reader. I will almost always read the epilogue first. Call me a spoilsport or no fun, or whatever but that's how I've been reading books for years. It's no wonder that when I write books, I tend to have the epilogue all figured out before I even start with "Once upon a time...".

That said... I read this epilogue and while I liked it, I just couldn't get past the ages of our characters. Couldn't do it. So I read the beginning. Still... If anything, the age of our characters was even more pronounced. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to read this. You see, I have an issue with "Happily ever after" and the hardly-twenty crowd, let alone an eighteen year old.

But that's my hang-up.

Another thing you may know about me? I will sometimes read a book in what I call a inside-out fashion. I jump all over the place until I find a snippet of story that absolutely grips me. And people -- there are a few of those parts in Everything. So because I found those gripping parts, I put my faith in Erin Noelle, and I started from page one -- and I gave Everett and Belle a chance.

And I'm so glad I did.

Everett and his twin sister have been making music forever -- literally. They're the children of a rockstar; music has always been their life. When their father's group decides to get back together (dad always said he'd go back when the twins were done with school), Mason tells the label -- if you take me, you're taking my kids: thus, giving Everett and Ashlynn the opportunity to take their music to a larger level than they have before.

Along the way, with a local gig, Everett meets Belle -- and so begins their story.

This is a story about growing up. This is a story about following your heart -- be it for a person or a career, or even both. It is about learning to trust the person you are giving your heart to, and about taking the ever-looming jump into unknown feelings. When you put your life, your wants, your desires in someone else's hands, the world opens up -- and it certainly does for Everett and Belle.

The part I most appreciated was that the author made Everett true to his age and situation. Belle was too, yes, but it was Everett and his new lifestyle that had me wanting to see true characterization for. He's a guy; he's a musician; he's new to love. He makes mistakes. And for those mistakes, I truly got on board with this story.

Everett and his Tinker Bell were incredibly cute. I liked that there's a decent time jump at the end, further allowing -- you guessed it -- growth of our characters. I'm excited to watch more of them when (if?) Ashlynn's story comes out.

*ARC received in exchange for an honest review

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