 Someone asked me last year how many books I read and I guessed 100 and their mouth dropped open. I won't lie. I read a lot, fast. I read like some people binge-watch TV shows, like, as soon as I finish a story, I'll story another one in that genre (especially if the story was a good one because then I have a book hang over and the cure is to just read more. It's science.
So my goal is to write down every time I finish a book. Seems simple enough, right? Even one month into 2019 and I scrambled trying to remember and figure out what books I read and where. I tend to alternate between kindle and paperback. But, this past month has been incredible because every book I read was amazing, memorable, and I would recommend every one of these stories to everyone I know. I tend to read romance, but there is always a Young Adult and something resembling a thriller each month. The list: —Innocent Man John Grisham does a phenomenal job writing about the true and heartbreaking story of a man put on death row who was innocent. The book documents the police work and shows every little misstep on how an innocent man was accused of a horrific crime. Gripping, sad, and captivating. —Hot Shot Doc RS Grey is the master of banter and painting a world within a story. I felt like I was in the surgery room throughout this enemies-to-lovers story. The banter, wit, and back-bone of the heroine were the perfect combination that had me rooting for the two stubborn characters to just let love happen. —The Secret to Dating your best friend’s sister I love books that give you the squishy feels. Meghan Quinn does an awesome job with this brother's-best-friend trope by weaving the past and the present into the central love story. This book made me laugh out loud multiple times, squeeze my kindle to my chest with swoons, and had me wishing for more of their story. —The Ex Effect Kayla Sorensen took a trope that had potential to be a disaster (the hero was engaged to the heroine's sister) but she wrote it in such a real, beautiful way that had me begging for the two to overcome the past. I love sports romance (it is my favorite genre to read and write) and we get to see the world of football and how the two characters navigate their sticky past. This was one of my first books of hers and I'll definitely read more. —Intercepted Alexa Martin is now on my list. Another sports romance that had all the feels. I like a heroine who sticks up for herself and a hero who is a big cinnamon roll when it comes to love. This story made me laugh and cry, and with Alexa having experience being an NFL wife, it showed an entire different side of the NFL I didn't know about. I LOVE learning about another world when reading so it was pretty awesome. —Merrily Ever After Jenny Holliday surprised the hell out of me. I'm not a huge fan of novellas (remember I'm a binge-reader, so I want to be there for hours) so I was hesitant diving into it but holy shit, I'm glad I did. This story had SO MUCH HEAT AND HEART I fell hard for the characters. I'm not kidding. It took no time for me to be so invested in their happy ending, I sped through it. There is something about a romance between married couples that is like an extra punch in the gut (in the good way) and how she wrote the characters, their flaws and all, I got big ole heart eyes for them. —Two Can Keep a Secret Karen McManus is the queen of young adult mystery. The characters are so relatable and feel like old friends. This latest story is so interwoven with clues and past and present crimes mixing and gah, it was chilling and incredible. I stayed up way too late to finish because it's one of those "tell me right freaking now who did it" type of stories. —99 Percent Mine Sally Throne is one of my favorite authors and I will get my grabby hands on anything she writes for the rest of her life. Her books are so powerful and emotional...I ate this entire story up the night it came out and cried when it was over (because it was so good). —Two Weeks Notice I love a story female lead. This story is about a badass chick who works her tail off and kinda/sorta falls in love in the process. I really liked this because it showed an entire world of high-stakes careers in New York and, the chemistry between the two characters explodes off the pages. Whitney G is now on my insta-buy list. —The Contract Melanie Moreland was a new author to me when I read this book and I am SO GLAD I did. This is an enemies-to-lovers, fake marriage story (okay Enemies-to-lovers is my catnip) and oh my God. She wrote this so well. Each page was a layer falling off the surly hero and the sweetheart heroine not backing down. I cried, laughed, swooned, and fell in LOVE with her writing style. I'm not one to re-read books but... this one might make that list. What books did you read this month? Any just knock your socks off?
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 Long and Short Reviews is hosting a weekly blogging challenge for the year with weekly prompts. It seems like such a fun idea so I'm going for it! I love prompts that spark writing--even if it's challenging or hard--so I'm excited to give it a try this year. You can find the prompts here!  This week is super fun (and a bit tough) because there are so many beloved characters from movies, stories, TV shows... video games, too.
My first thought was easy: Belle from Beauty and the Beast! She's brunette, quirky, and loves to read. (That's how I would've described myself growing up, too). Plus, it's such a beautiful name. It could be a nickname from Isabella, Isabella, Bell, Bella... it might be my dream girl name. Other girl names that I adore: Hermione Lily Rey Ariel (The Little Mermaid was my FAVORITE movie growing up) Boy names: Hamilton Roarke Logan Aiden Edward Other names that I love but I think would be best suited for pets: Yoshi Voldemort Dumbledore Chandler Fraiser Pongo It's hard to name a child after a character when some of them are so recognizable...like Katniss or Hermione. (Even though they are badass ladies) What about you? What character would you name a baby after?  Long and Short Reviews is hosting a weekly blogging challenge for the year with weekly prompts. It seems like such a fun idea so I'm going for it! I love prompts that spark writing--even if it's challenging or hard--so I'm excited to give it a try this year. You can find the prompts here!  This picture explains it all. My favorite thing to do in the winter is read, drink coffee, and enjoy a nice fire. Growing up in the midwest allowed for a lot of below freezing temperatures for longer than three months. Winter could last from November to April, sometimes shorter, sometimes longer, but the coffee and reading never stopped.
There is something magical about a steaming cup of your favorite drink, the warmth of the fire hitting your feet, and a book that takes you wherever you like to go. My favorite books to read are romance, psychological thrillers, and romantic suspense. Each Christmas, I load up my kindle with ten stories that I devour while on break from work. It is my time each year to not do anything but visit with family and read. It is my favorite. The only hard part: I now live in Phoenix where winter doesn't get below 40 degrees, and while it is beautiful, it isn't the same feeling. I miss the snow, the bone-chilling cold, the way your breath hurts your lungs, and the fireplaces. Having a fire in Arizona isn't the same. Winters here are spent enjoying the perfect weather; people hike, eat every meal outside, play any sport you want, and soak up the constant sunshine. It's been hard getting used to what "winter" means to us as we made our home in Phoenix and while it's nostalgic to think about my childhood winters, they will always be wonderful memories. What about you? What are your favorite things to do in winter?  I'm going to be honest. I'm obsessed with this cover. It's so fun, colorful, and totally fits the mood of this series. The Game Changer is the second book in the Cleat Chasers Series and will be available for pre-order February 19, 2019. Here is the blurb below:
Greta Aske has a lot going on: fear of student loans becoming too much to afford on a teacher’s salary, worrying about her brother’s divorce, and going on a string of bad dates that has her giving up on men, at least for the time being. Her focus becomes saving as much money as she can and getting good grades. Her life contains a little too much drama and she needs a break. The perfect solution presents itself: pretend to date the campus’ playboy. That’ll keep the guys away for sure. Aaron Hill is desperate to save his baseball career, because with his dad fighting cancer, he damn well knows he can’t ask for a single penny from his parents. Baseball is his past, present, and future so when a scandal breaks out threatening his future in the MLB, he turns to his best friend for help. They stage a fake relationship to keep him out of trouble. It’s perfect, really. Greta’s taking a break from dating and Aaron needs to focus on training. Nothing could go wrong. The issue is… the deal was that neither would fall for the other. It was all staged and they had to stick to the plan. But, when lines are crossed, what’s real and fake blurs and they are forced to face their fears. Is Greta the game changer Aaron needs? This story made me laugh, cry, and roll my eyes at Greta and Aaron as they navigate the treacherous line between friends and something more. I adore these two personalities because they are so similar and perfect for each other...they just don't know how to admit it. It releases April 2, 2019 and now, I'm finalizing edits for the third book, Best Player, where we get to see Aaron's sister navigate her way through finding love.  Long and Short Reviews is hosting a weekly blogging challenge for the year with weekly prompts. It seems like such a fun idea so I'm going for it! I love prompts that spark writing--even if it's challenging or hard--so I'm excited to give it a try this year. You can find the prompts here! Week 2: What would I do with a million dollars?  At first glance, this question seems easy, right? Vacation! Pay Debts! Shopping! Shoes! (Seriously, give me ALL the shoes)
But the more I think about it, I think experiences are what I would want. The "adult" part of my brain chimes in with investing or paying the mortgage or put it into retirement but those are already part of life. Sure, a chunk of my very real dollars could go to those things to satisfy the "responsible" part of my brain, where the rest would struggle with what experiences to choose from. Here are eight ideas that come to mind that could help spend that dough: 1) Donate/help out schools. They ALWAYS needs more supplies and too man teachers use their own money for their classrooms. 2) Buy a dog park and save all the dogs. We got a rescue dog three years ago and he changed our lives forever--these dogs are so grateful for a chance at life and every time I snuggle him I wish I could save all the dogs. 3) Straight up get a Beauty and the Beast inspired library. Ladder and all. 4) Go on a two-week trip to New Zealand and Fiji. Camp, backpack, and experience everything they have to offer. (Both are on my bucket list) 5) Visit all seven continents. (Honestly, I'd love to visit Antarctica) 6) See all my favorite artists in concert. 7) Travel to every MLB stadium in the US 8) Buy all of my favorite 3-Wick candles from Bath and Bodyworks. I don't think that list would equate to that much money...but it's a good start when I win money someday. What about you? What would you spend a million dollars on?   Long and Short Reviews is hosting a weekly blogging challenge for the year with weekly prompts. It seems like such a fun idea so I'm going for it! I love prompts that spark writing--even if it's challenging or hard--so I'm excited to give it a try this year. You can find the prompts here! (I know I'm three days late, but better late than never!) Week 1: Books that need a Prequel The entire Harry Potter series. (If you know me, this is pretty on brand to be my first pick, LOL). I would LOVE to read about a young Dumbledore, or Hagrid, or Harry's parents when they were in school.. Even Ron's parents. There are so many different adventures they could go on and my grabby hands would want to read all of them. What kind of shenanigans did they get into? What was life like for them? I guess these books don't need a prequel, but I'd love them to have one!  I am Pilgrim, by Terry Hayes. This is one of my favorite books of all time, actually, and the back of the book is as intriguing and daunting as the story. I mean, one look at this and I had to read it. "A breakneck race against time…and an implacable enemy. An anonymous young woman murdered in a run-down hotel, all identifying characteristics dissolved by acid. A father publicly beheaded in the blistering heat of a Saudi Arabian public square. A notorious Syrian biotech expert found eyeless in a Damascus junkyard. Smoldering human remains on a remote mountainside in Afghanistan. A flawless plot to commit an appalling crime against humanity. One path links them all, and only one man can make the journey. Pilgrim." This story could use a prequel as the author drops clues and hints of the main character's life before, just snippets of it, and I think there is huge potential to have an entire story (if not a couple) of how the character got to where he was in Pilgrim.  Behind Closed Doors is a dark, twisted, amazing story that kept me up and night because the ending is just...(no spoilers, but holy shit) The premise is this: the perfect marriage or the perfect lie. The main characters are two people: one version in public, and one version behind closed doors. We get to see the journey the characters go on but, it is a dark and at times, so messed up, that I almost wish there was a prequel to see WHY and HOW a certain someone got to be the way they did. It couldn't happen overnight, right? People don't just decide to be psychopaths. It's gripping and sick and it's been months since reading and I still think about this book (in the best way). So yeah, if there was a prequel to this, I'd read it so fast. Do you have any stories that you wished there were prequels for?
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