Tag: new adult

Review: Summer Skin by Kirsty Eagar

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Had the sudden urge to check out one scene from this book and ended up rereading all the scenes with Mitch in one quick succession. (Yes, I still skip the pages only to read the scenes with Mitch/Blondie).

Is this my favorite book couple? No. Is this my favorite romance? Yes. Make it make sense…

It’s just that I take so much joy in the actual romance scenes of this book that I don’t even care for the fact that the couple doesn’t fit that well together. Similarly to my reading experience with The Hating Game: I love the romance, hate the couple.

Let me paint the picture with this scene showcasing the little things that make this book stand out to me:

“Honestly, I’m too tired for this shit.’ As Jess said it, she felt it. ‘Exhausted. Do you know I’ve been out every night for the last six nights?’
‘You’re a legend.’
‘That’s what I was aiming for. Legend status.’
He smiled, squeezing her with his thighs. ‘Sit down.”

The emphasis put on simply displaying tender touches instead of rushing to check off big milestones is the definition of romance™. I want more!!! Which is probably why I keep coming back to Summer skin time and again. But it’s also why I’m perplexed by this book. I mean it has hands down one of the best romance scenes I’ve read, and yet, it degrades itself in the second half by including so many unnecessary drama scenes. Why? I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: This is a romance book, we’re here for the romance!!

I mean, Mitch is the kind of guy you see repeatedly women complain about in advice columns with his hot-and-cold behavior: “If a guy wants to hang out daily but avoids getting personal does that secretly mean he really likes me?” Yeah, just the kind of guy you dream about… I felt legit sorry for Jess for having to put up with him simply because she’s addicted to his touch. Something as little as Mitch refusing to give his phone number to her aggravated me (he refuses multiple times, ugh). If anything, the social distancing rules now in place keep guys like Mitch away. Far, far away.
Like I said, I had more respect for him as Blondie because at least Jess put him in his place. Also, hot.

Oh, and funny looking at the dates of my previous reread to notice that I read it around the same time last year. There are cosmic forces at work with this book. Like I noted at the end of my review: their sexual tension traveled into the future to remind me to reread it.

My previous reread impressions on October 13, 2019 (shared on Goodreads):

When you intend on only going back to reread one chapter and end up awake till nearly 4am to finish the book… Help. It’s those damned Coca-Cola cans.

Also, why did I end up enjoying Mitch when he was simply known as “Blondie” more? The thrill of Jess’s electric chemistry with him at the start was everything. It’s why I kept reading on and on. I’ll be the first to admit that his “Can I touch you?” worked all too well on me. I really enjoyed them challenging each other to see who would push the line too far. But that only seemed to happen at the start.

So the end turned into a bit of a let down with Mitch constantly disappearing, basically ghosting Jess, only to turn up intoxicated at her doorstep. Rinse and Repeat. Mitch’s quick remarks as “Blondie” and Jess’s feisty remarks putting him in his place were simply too good to be replaced with this wishy-washy behavior.

As a disclaimer, I tried reading this back in May 2016 and dnf’d it because “Blondie” turned into “Mitch,” and it really wasn’t doing the same for me at the end. But given that it’s been three years and I could still recall scenes so vividly, like the Coca-Cola cans and the construction workers scene, really speaks volumes about this book. It was written so well that their sexual tension traveled three years into the future to remind me to reread it.

Check out where the fun begins through this Amazon excerpt:

 

Review: The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

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This must be my first romance read in years to come, but the premise behind The Kiss Quotient sounded like the right kind of light and steamy book I craved. The romance also indicates that a lot of the novel depends on feeling and less on rational thought, so the two constant moods I had during my reading experience – courtesy of the male lead, Michael Phan– can be summed up with these iconic vines:

 

 

 

Also: Why did I choose one of the warmest days of the season to read this book that had me blushing and sweating 90% of the time?? And how is it that I wasn’t even planning on reviewing The Kiss Quotient, but still felt the need to talk about it… We’ll start at the beginning by including the synopsis:

Stella Lane thinks math is the only thing that unites the universe. She comes up with algorithms to predict customer purchases–a job that has given her more money than she knows what to do with, and way less experience in the dating department than the average thirty-year-old.

It doesn’t help that Stella has Asperger’s and French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. Her conclusion: she needs lots of practice–with a professional. Which is why she hires escort Michael Phan. The Vietnamese and Swedish stunner can’t afford to turn down Stella’s offer, and agrees to help her check off all the boxes on her lesson plan–from foreplay to more-than-missionary position…

This is the one romance novel I read that gets things right by not focusing on exterior noise we’re not here for (like whining about one’s job, family, friend, etc.); we’re all here for the sweet rush of hormones, adrenaline, and swooning. So I was glad the author began the novel by skipping straight to the good stuff without having to pretend like we care for their personal lives outside the relationship because I obviously don’t if I picked up a romance book…

“She’d looked at him like she saw no one else. ”

I’m also beyond grateful Michael didn’t rush Stella into things their first time meeting and took things “ultra-slow” because that is just what she (and I) needed. soft scenes > hot and heavy scenes. Like, drawing out their first exquisite kiss:

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This boy had me nearly drooling like a dog.

Unfortunately so, this point is also where my following problems stem from with the remaining half of The Kiss Quotient . After Stella and Michael grow, naturally, more comfortable with one another, the soft scenes get dropped into the background to give light to more racy developments… which after a couple of chapters of the same old same had me feeling numb. I feel like the chase between Stella and Michael was way more exhilarating for me than them actually being together. (I mean, don’t even get me started on the traumatizing ‘meet the family’ scene * shudders *.)

I just wanted my soft man to show, but in its place, when both the novelty and excitement wear off, his over-protective ways show, which I personally wasn’t too keen on it; Stella definitely was.

All in all: The Kiss Quotient plunged me into an exhilarating head-start with its romance, so much so that I felt like Cookie Monster, wanting more and more, to quote from Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl: “I never think the chapters are too long. I just want more and more and more.” The girl waved her hands in front of her mouth like she was Cookie Monster eating cookies.” 

ARC kindly provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: June 5th, 2018

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Review: Making It Complicated by Clarisse David

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I’ve been patiently biding my time for this companion to Keeping the Distance to release out into the world ever since I finished the first book that fateful night in February. After nine faithful months, it finally came to my notice today that the sequel was already out, so I hurried on to catch up with these beloved characters.

Nineteen-year-old Cam has a metric ton of emotional baggage and is in no mood to unload them on anyone. After her parents’ marriage imploded, stress-free is the only way she wants her life to be. And what could be more freeing than spending the summer on Boracay? Absolutely nothing…until she bumps heads with Hunter, the hot drummer who screams incoming heartbreak from a mile away.

Though I’m a bit mad at myself for reading this book a whole month after its publication, Making It Complicated still presented itself at exactly the right time in my life. It’s interesting how just the day before I’d been in the mood for a quick and fun-filled romance to sweep me off my feet, and the universe delivered just right with this book.

The events of this book are set a year after Keeping the Distance: Camille Velasco, Melissa Ortiz’s best friend, is set for her summer before college, full of bright and hopeful opportunities.

“It was a great night to be nineteen.”

Side note: I’m thankful I got my wish fulfilled of having Cam as the main in the sequel, as I mentioned in my review for #1. Her carefree youth encompassed me at the start of the book. Speaking of which, here are some of the main points from the book I’d like to highlight (mild spoilers ahead):

  • The main issue occurring between Cam and Mel, “the best friend I didn’t quite know how to deal with anymore,” of how they’d outgrown each other.

“I wanted to be happy for her.
Truly, I did.
But a huge part of me didn’t believe in the same things she did anymore, in finding such utter bliss with another person and trusting they weren’t going to rip you apart. I didn’t have the energy for that.”

We follow Cam’s journey of going out into the world on her own to try to find who she is a person, especially after the whole ordeal that happened in her family. I’m a sucker for a classic coming-of-age tale.

  • There’s a lot more angst and resentment than I anticipated going into this, but nonetheless grew to appreciate as an important trait of Cam’s strong-willed character growth.

“I was broken, and I had to stop hoping other people would fix things. Not Mel. Not Hunter. I had to put the pieces back together myself.”

Her anger was palpable, understandable, and not just swept away over the course of the book, which I appreciated a tenfold.

  • But circling back to Mel and Cam, the continuous miscommunication happening between them brought to mind my favorite quote from my favorite duo in Broad City:tumblr_o3g7ywkmoy1qiaxzfo2_250
  • I was relieved to see less of her best friend because truth to be told, Mel and Lance were so uncomfortable to watch from an outsider’s perspective. In their POV in Keeping the Distance, I could put aside my discomfort and chalk it up to nothing serious… But seeing them acting all lovey-dovey in front of Cam, I couldn’t help but think of this eerily fitting vine:

So I was low-key relieved to see less and less of them over the span of the book.

  • Instead, I welcomed the new group dynamics with Hunter Alvarez and his bandmates Cal, Eddie, and Keith. The teasing was merciless. And the laughs endless.
  • Plus, I have to pay attention to a tiny detail from one of the members that had me enraptured for the rest of the book:

“Do you want to listen to this podcast with me?” Keith offered one of his earphones to me.”

This offer is the one true key to my heart.

  • But out of all the members, I’d love to know more about my silent mystery man, Cal. “It was obvious Hunter made most of the major decisions, but Cal could control the rest of them with a single sentence. All that quiet power was amazing to watch in action.”
  • Finally, moving on to the main couple of the book… The rising sexual tension between Cam and Hunter was deliciously satisfying.

“Did I dare step inside his house when I knew very well we were going to be alone? A thousand thoughts—about the feel of his lips on mine, how hard his abs were underneath my fingertips—demanded entry into my brain. I refused to let them in.
“Is there anyone else inside?” I trusted Hunter, just not my hormones.
I watched as a light bulb seemed to go off in his head. His eyes moved from my black camisole down to my distressed denim shorts. The look he gave me made me want to pull my shirt collar away from my neck and fan myself with one hand. Voice low, he said, “No, it’s just us.”

This infinitely patient boy had me sitting at the edge of my seat with the drop of his voice.

And one more for the road:

“Every inch of my side connected with his, our shoulders and knees sliding against each other every time the jeepney stopped. When the wind burst inside and whipped my hair around my shoulders, Hunter reached out and gathered the strands in his fist, pulling them over my shoulder for me.
When his fingers brushed against my neck, I forgot how to breathe.
“You look a little…weird,” Hunter sounded a little too happy. He knew very well what he was doing to me. The bastard.”tumblr_osw20dinl11td9fl4o7_r1_400

Overall, this sequel full of antics from youthful summers exceeded all my expectations. I’m giddy for what’s next in store.

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