Author Archives: Pam

Feature & Follow Friday #26 #FF – Book that Made Me Shed a Tear

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Feature & Follow

 

This is a blog hop, a way to find and follow new blogs,

hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.

You can follow me by using any one of the options over on the left sidebar.

This weeks question: What was the last book that made you cry?

Image from Goodreads

Image from Goodreads

I mentioned this one the other week, but this book is so well written and intense.  It gave me some serious anxiety while reading it.  It’s just one of those books that you become so attached to that you can’t help but cry when certain things go wrong.

Have a great weekend guys and thanks for stopping by!

~Pam

 

 

 

 

Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Box Set Review

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Image from Goodreads

Image from Goodreads

Title:  Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Box Set

Authors:  Ava Lore, Terry Towers, Anna Antonia, Amy Aday, Selena Kitt, Nelle L’Amour, Tawny Taylor, Dez Burke, and Marian Tee

Published:  October 2013 by Excessica

Genre:  Erotica

Purchase the Billionaire Bad Boys of Romance Boxed Set from Amazon

 

***This box set contains mature themes, as does this review, and is intended for audiences ages 18 and over.***

 

This is my first review about a box set!  When I started out reading this I was pleasantly surprised.  I guess I thought because it was advertised so cheap on amazon for ten books, that the writing would be bad or the books wouldn’t be good, but that wasn’t the case at all.  I was also surprised to find out that I was reading a BDSM erotica bundle.  Lol.  Guess I should read the synopsis sometimes before I take on a request.  But honestly, I thought it was a romance box set.  It’s okay though, I’m not anti-erotica.  I liked 50 Shades.  Anyways, I only read some of the books, so I’ll just do some quick reviews on the ones that I read.

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The Billionaire’s Muse by Ava Lore

This was a great start to the set.  I was like, wow, if this is what all the books are going to be like, it’s going to be great!

Sadie accidentally breaks a very valuable vase at an auction.  This vase belongs to billionaire Malcolm Ward.  Sadie agrees to be his muse to pay him back for the vase.  Trouble is, Malcolm isn’t really sure what kind of artist he is, so he has to spend a lot of time with Sadie to find out.

This one started out great, Sadie is sarcastic and awesome.  During the beginning of the auction this thought goes through her head, “Me, I was just hoping for a fist fight to break out.” (location 95/14072 on kindle).  Hey, she made me laugh a lot. However, some of the sex scenes were a little weird for me.  Paint brushes shouldn’t go certain places.  Just saying.  And then I felt like the story stretched out a little too long and got a little off course as well.

Overall though, it was a good book.

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The CEO and the Girl from the Coffee Shop by Terry Towers

The billionaire, Gabriel, wants barista, Beth, to come be his housekeeper and chef.  I couldn’t get into this one; I got bored, didn’t finish it and went on to the next.

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Yes, Mr. Collins by Anna Antonia

Mr. Collins is so demanding that he doesn’t keep a personal assistant for long, because no one meets his expectations.  That is until Natasha works for him.  Natasha starts the job so nervous because she knows what Mr. Collins is like.  But then, after she is getting physically sick from stress, she decides that she’s going to change her way of thinking and not be nervous anymore, but live up to the challenge.

This story was quick and decent.  It seemed to be shorter than the others.

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Heidi and the Kaiser by Selena Kitt

Heidi is working in the fashion world, but not as she would like, which would be as a designer.  On the job setting up a photo shoot, she spills coffee on billionaire Warren Kaiser’s pants.  He spanks her and she likes it.  Heidi ends up working for him, and the punishments continue.

Yeah, I’m conflicted on this one.  It felt like borderline abuse.  Heidi liked it but, well, I didn’t!  Kaiser seemed so harsh to me, even at the end.  What kind of relationship is that, you know?

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Gloria’s Secret by Nelle L’Amour

This is another one I just couldn’t finish.  I was bored, I couldn’t get into it.  Gloria is the owner of a lingerie company, (you get it right?  I hope so!)  Anyways here’s a little excerpt that caught my eye.

My right eye was blue; my left one brown.  I had a rare genetic condition known as heterochromia.  In press releases and on the Internet, both eyes appeared to be brown thanks to Photoshop.  But because I suffered from dry eye syndrome, I was unable to use contacts to conceal my idiosyncrasy the rest of the time. (location 7058/14072)

This is pure silliness!  Jane Seymour has different colored eyes, as does Kate Bosworth.  They don’t try to hide it and they’re actors not an owner of a lingerie shop!  Not only that, but I have one brown eye and one green eye myself so obviously I picked up on this.  Gloria must have some real issues for having her eyes photoshopped to be the same color.  I don’t know though cause like I said, I didn’t finish the book.

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There are a few more stories that I didn’t list here; I didn’t read all of them.  So overall I would say that this is a good box set.  Not ‘avoid at all cost.’ Not ‘you need to read this now!’  But good, especially for the cheap prices that amazon tends to list it for.

 

 

My Rating for the whole set: 

3 out of 5 stars

 03

~Pam

 

*****I received this book free from one of the authors, Marian Tee, in exchange for an honest review.*****

Closet Full of Coke Review

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Title:  Closet Full of Coke  Closet Full of Coke

Author:  Indra Sena

Published:  2012 by Indra Sena

Genre: Memoir

Purchase Closet Full of Coke from Amazon

 

 

 

About the Book: 

Narrated by the teenage girl who lived it, Closet Full of Coke tells the true story of how a New York suburban fifteen-year-old girl’s savvy and wit helps turn the small-time drug business of Armando, a Colombian drug dealer, into a multi-million-dollar cocaine operation that puts them on the DEA’s Wanted List.

This intimate diary gives readers a fast-paced glimpse of the couple’s speedy rise to riches, and their inevitable descent.

These wannabe drug lords of the 1980s New York-to-Florida drug scene end their story only three years later with an untimely death, betrayal, and revenge.

Here is a true account of drug dealers whose obsession with money, power, sex, and glamour drives them to a lifestyle of deceit and recklessness, ending in tragedies that destroy lives forever.  (Provided by Pump Up Your Book.)

I was so excited to read this book!  Does anyone remember Go Ask Alice?  That’s the first thought that came into my mind when I saw the synopsis and I thought, I haven’t read a book like that in a while.

Like the synopsis says, this memoir tells the story of a 15 year old drug dealer.  Indra is about to make a buy at her dealer’s house (she currently sells at her high school) and he isn’t there but Armando, her dealer’s supplier is.  She goes for a car ride with Armando and soon he becomes her dealer and boyfriend (even though he’s married).

There is so much potential in this book and for it to be based on real life is crazy.  It seems like something one would see on a TV special, 20/20, or a movie.  It was a fast paced suspenseful read, but I just felt as if a few details could have made it amazing instead of good.

There are a few characters in the book that are frightening.  If you make them mad, there is no telling what they might do.  One of those people is Armando.  Indra knows that he beat up his wife, she saw the bruises on her face so of course she is scared of him.  We as readers know this, but my heart didn’t pump in fear in situations when it should have.

The other person was Carlos, Armando’s brother in law.  This guy was a legit psycho; he got off on violence.  I know Indra must have felt terrified in some of the situations with him, and I wanted to feel it with her, but I just didn’t.  Maybe some situations should have just been worded differently?

My heart breaks for the author and her parental situation growing up; it just sounded plan awful.  Her parents were addicts and selfish, and being a parent myself, this just broke my heart.  Another thing that seriously bothered me was Indra’s non actions in getting a woman she worked with out of jail after they both got in trouble.  The woman, Janet I believe, had a kid, and Indra just seems to blow it off.  I know she was young, but man, it made my blood boil.  (Obviously these situations were well written for me to have reactions such as these.)

Although some things bothered me, and I do feel like it could have been amazing instead of just good, I do think it’s a good book.  I read it within a few days, and enjoyed it.  And perhaps a teenager on the brink of a bad decision will read this and will change their mind about their future actions.  Although it does not have a happy ever after, I still do recommend it.

My Rating:  3 1/2 out of 5 stars

~Pam

**I received this book free from Pump Up Your Book in exchange for an honest review.***

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About the Author:

You can visit Indra Sena’s website at www.closetfullofcoke.com. Indra is currently working on her second memoir. It covers two years in her twenties, where she joined the Rainbow Family and traveled the US and abroad.

Her latest book is the memoir, Closet Full of Coke.

Connect & Socialize with Indra

FACEBOOK | GOODREADS

Discuss this book in our PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads by clicking HERE.

Closet Full of Coke banner***Images, and wording for about the book & author were provided by Pump Up Your Book***

Feature & Follow Friday #25 #FF – Blogger I Follow

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Feature & Follow

 

This is a blog hop, a way to find and follow new blogs,

hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.

You can follow me by using any one of the options over on the left sidebar.

This weeks question: Find a “new to you blogger” and feature their button on your post this week. Tell us why this blogger stands out to you. 

Paranormal Book Club

 

I mostly follow them through facebook, where they’re very active (and have over 20,000 followers!)  They have a ‘pimp your page’ post at least once a week, and they’ve helped me gain a ton of followers by posting my page on theirs.  They comment back and they just seem like a nice bunch.  🙂

Have a great weekend everyone!

~Pam

Labor Day Review

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Image from Goodreads

Image from Goodreads

Title:  Labor Day

Author:  Joyce Maynard

Published:  2009 by William Morrow

Genre:  Contemporary Romance

Purchase Labor Day from Amazon

 

 

It was the end of summer and Henry was just happy to be out of the house.  His mother, Adele, doesn’t like to leave the comforts of home, and going out has become a rarity.  They are at the store because Henry has grown and needs new clothes.  Henry is minding his own business reading a magazine when an injured man asks him for help.   He noticed that Henry came in the store with his mother, and he wants them to take him to their house.  Adele agrees.  Turns out, this man, Frank, is a fugitive and on the run, but Adele just takes the news in stride as does Henry.  A relationship ensues between Adele and Frank, but is it for real, or just another part of the fugitive’s plan to escape the law?

Adele is going to be brought up in a lot of book clubs.  Is she a bad mother?  Let’s see, she talks to Henry about things that are definitely inappropriate.  Adele is in dire need for a friend.  And since she only has one kind-of friend/acquaintance, Henry gets to listen to all of Adele’s thoughts some which he shouldn’t be privy too.

What about Henry’s dad?  Should he be the one raising Henry?  Well, Henry’s dad is remarried with a stepson and a new baby.  Henry did try living there, but poor kid just didn’t feel like he belonged in the ‘new’ family.

Back to Adele, what was she thinking bring a bleeding stranger home with her and her son?!?!  Again, she definitely has issues, and you do find out what they are.  She definitely needs companionship in her life.

And what about Frank the fugitive?  I wasn’t sure about him for a while.  Is he the bad guy?  Is he just faking his feelings for Adele?  For Henry?  Well, I guess you’re going to have to read it to find out.

One thing that just wasn’t for me was the style of writing.  The author didn’t use quotation marks at all during conversations between characters.  It was different, but not for me.

As some of you know, this book is now a major motion picture; and I haven’t had the chance to see it yet.   It was definitely a good book, just not life changing or great.  That’s why I gave it three stars.

 

My Rating:  3 out of 5 stars

03

 

~Pam

*****I purchased this book for myself.*****