Blog Tour Review + Dreamcast + Giveaway: Unraveled by Jen Frederick

Today is my stop on the blog tour for Unraveled by Jen Frederick, hosted by TRSOR Promotions. I have so many FEELS for not only this book, but this series and I am ecstatic that I get to share my review and Jen's dream cast with you today. If you haven't read this series yet, I can't recommend it enough. Jen is awesomesauce and Unspoken was one of my favorite books of 2013!

Unraveled

(Woodlands #3)

Author: Jen Frederick

Publisher: Pear Tree LLC

Publication Date: January 20, 2014

Genre: New Adult Contemporary

Source: eARC via TRSOR Promotions

~Synopsis~

Twenty-five-year-old Sgt. Gray Phillips is at a crossroads in his life: stay in the Marine Corps or get out and learn to be a civilian? He’s got forty-five days of leave to make up his mind but the people in his life aren’t making the decision any easier. His dad wants him to get out; his grandfather wants him to stay in. And his growing feelings for Sam Anderson are wreaking havoc with his heart…and his mind. He believes relationships get ruined when a Marine goes on deployment. So now he’s got an even harder decision to make: take a chance on Sam or leave love behind and give his all to the Marines.

Twenty-two year old Samantha Anderson lost her husband to an IED in Afghanistan just two months after their vows. Two years later, Sam is full of regrets—that she didn’t move with her husband to Alaska; that she allowed her friends to drift away; that she hasn’t taken many chances in life. Now, she’s met Gray and taking a risk on this Marine could be her one opportunity to feel alive and in love again. But how can she risk her heart on another military man who could share the same tragic fate as her husband?

~Review~

I cannot even express how much I loved this book right now. I didn't know it could get better after Unspoken but it can and it has. Jen has impressed me so much with her writing, character development and general awesomeness. This book has rocked my world! I am officially head over heels, deeply, madly in love with Gray Phillips. I’m about to tell you why.

Gray is a man at a crossroads in his life; re-sign his military contract or get out and become a civilian. He’s really struggling with what to do and where he wants his life to go. When it comes to women, he is definitely jaded and very careful. He was hurt badly by his ex-girlfriend and he has never really gotten over that hurt. Because of this, he doesn’t do relationships or commitment.  Until he meets Sam. As much as he wants to deny that she’s anything more than just a good time while he’s on leave, he can’t help the connection that he builds with her.

Sam is still recovering from the death of her forever sweetheart and short term husband, Will, who was killed in action in the Army. It’s been two years, but she’s still struggling to move forward and come out of the grief. My heart broke for Sam because she is so young to be a widow and Will was the love of her life. Gray is the exact kind of guy she doesn’t want to fall for but she definitely feels a raw attraction and more importantly, a deep connection. Sam knows her time with Gray is limited but she could never regret the time she spent with him.

This is such a love story and I loved every single step of Sam and Gray’s journey. They are two people with very different situations of loss but they are both grieving and are deeply affected by their experiences. The chemistry is out of this world and I think Jen did a tremendous job of bringing that out in her writing. I really FELT the passion between Sam and Gray and I definitely had butterflies in my stomach a time or two. I could tell Sam and Gray were falling for each other before they even admitted it to themselves. Gray may not do relationships but he’s not a man-whore and he has so much respect for women. I loved the way he protected and cherished Sam and the sweet things he did for her to open her up to life again. He took her on some really sweet and thoughtful adventures and I absolutely loved seeing Gray fall in love with Sam. She totally took him by surprise and buried herself into his heart, which isn’t easy to do.

My only disappointment was Sam’s reaction to a mistake that Gray made. I could totally see why she was hurt but she never gave him the chance to explain and had she just given Gray the chance, they both could have been spared some serious heartache. I loved that Gray gave her the space she needed but didn’t give up on her. He bided his time while he worked on his “big gesture” and it was the sweetest and most romantic thing ever. If I wasn’t ready to jump his bones before that, I would have been sold at this point. While I was frustrated with Sam for letting Gray go, I really think that the time away from him gave her the chance to figure out who she is and what she wants now that she had been awakened again. Her greatest realization was that she could be happy and love again and she had found that with Gray.

I loved seeing all the Woodlands boys again and Noah and Bo are really great friends. They help Gray a lot and give him some great advice. They are two incredible men and they show him what he’s missing with their relationships with Grace and AM. I also really liked Sam’s mom and her sister, Bitsy. They are so supportive of Sam and they want to see her happy again. They give her some really great advice when it comes to Gray. Will’s parents are a bit difficult and I felt bad for Sam because they were really holding her back in her healing. His mother is still dealing with the death and she definitely makes Sam feel guilty for moving forward in her life. Will’s dad is a piece of work and it is obvious that he is part of the reason Will’s mom can’t heal and move forward. He puts a lot of pressure on Sam about going back to school to become a lawyer and join the firm he runs with her mom. I loved that her mom wants her to become a lawyer too, but wants her to be happy more than anything.

Once I started this book, there was no stopping until I finished. I was enthralled from the very beginning and immediately emotionally invested with the characters and their stories. This is just what Jen does when she writes. There is something about her writing that really draws me in. Not only are the characters incredibly developed but Jen writes some very steamy and romantic love scenes. Gray is a dirty talker and those are my favorite kind of book boyfriends. He definitely knows how to make a woman swoon and never want to get out of bed. I loved the ending to this book and the direction that Jen took the storyline and resolved the issues that Sam and Gray both faced. We still have 3 more Woodlands boys to go and this makes me very happy because I will cry like a baby when this series is over.

~IPOD Picks~

“Stay” by Rihanna

“Breaking Your Own Heart” by Kelly Clarkson

“Addicted to Love” by Skylar Grey

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | KOBO | APPLE | SMASHWORDS | ARE

~Jen’s Dream Cast~

Sgt. Gray Phillips (Kellan Lutz)

Samantha Anderson (Shailene Woodley)

About Jen  Frederick

Jen Frederick lives with her husband, child, and one rambunctious dog.  She's been reading stories all her life but never imagined writing one of her own. Jen loves to hear from readers so drop her a line at jen@jenfrederick.com.

Website: https://twitter.com/jensfred

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJenFrederick

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jensfred

Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/p3ptasx

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Also, check out the first 2 books in the Woodland Hills Series.You don't want to miss out on any minute of this incredible series!

Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/msw5e78

Barnes & Noble:http://tinyurl.com/mtpmpk5

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/undeclared

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17612258-undeclared

For four years, Grace Sullivan wrote to a Marine she never met, and fell in love. But when his deployment ended, so did the letters. Ever since that day, Grace has been coasting, academically and emotionally. The one thing she’s decided? No way is Noah Jackson — or any man — ever going to break her heart again.

Noah has always known exactly what he wants out of life. Success. Stability. Control. That’s why he joined the Marines and that’s why he’s fighting his way — literally — through college. Now that he’s got the rest of his life on track, he has one last conquest: Grace Sullivan. But since he was the one who stopped writing, he knows that winning her back will be his biggest battle yet.

Amazon: http://amzn.to/17XQcLb

Barnes & Noble: http://tinyurl.com/mwenc94

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/unspoken-14

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18196235-unspoken

Whore. Slut. Typhoid Mary.

I've been called all these at Central College. One drunken night, one act of irresponsible behavior, and my reputation was ruined. Guys labeled me as easy and girls shied away. To cope, I stayed away from Central social life and away from Central men, so why is it that my new biology lab partner is so irresistible to me?

He's everything I shouldn't want. A former Marine involved in illegal fighting with a quick trigger temper and an easy smile for all the women. His fists aren't the danger to me, though, it's his charm. He's sliding his way into my heart and I'm afraid that he's going to be the one to break me.

Impulsive. Unthinking. Hot tempered.

I allow instinct to rule my behavior. If it feels good, do it, has been my motto because if I spend too much time thinking, I'll begin to remember exactly where I came from. At Central College, I've got fighting and I've got women and I thought I was satisfied until I met her.

She's everything I didn't realize I wanted and the more time I spend with her, the more I want her. But she's been hurt too much in the past and I don't want to be the one to break her. I know I should walk away, but I just can't.

Bonus Content: Upon reaching the USA Today Bestselling milestone, I wrote a 10,000 word epilogue as a thank you to the readers who loved and supported Unspoken.  I posted it for free on my blog but at the urging of readers, I have added it to the original version.  

Note: This is a New Adult Contemporary Romance with mature content and sexually explicit scenes. 91,000+ words. Standalone novel.