Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: All Lined Up by Cora Carmack

Today is my stop on the blog tour for All Lined Up by Cora Carmack, hosted by Inkslinger PR. I am super excited for another series by the amazing Cora Carmack. Check out my review and the giveaway below!

All Lined Up

Rusk University #1

Author: Cora Carmack

Publisher: William Marrow

Publication Date: May 13, 2014

Genre: Contemporary Romance

~Synopsis~

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cora Carmack follows up her trio of hits—Losing It, Faking It, and Finding It—with this thrilling first novel in an explosive series bursting with the Texas flavor, edge, and steamy romance of Friday Night Lights.

In Texas, two things are cherished above all else—football and gossip. My life has always been ruled by both.

Dallas Cole loathes football. That's what happens when you spend your whole childhood coming in second to a sport. College is her time to step out of the bleachers, and put the playing field (and the players) in her past.

But life doesn't always go as planned. As if going to the same college as her football star ex wasn’t bad enough, her father, a Texas high school coaching phenom, has decided to make the jump to college ball… as the new head coach at Rusk University. Dallas finds herself in the shadows of her father and football all over again.

Carson McClain is determined to go from second-string quarterback to the starting line-up. He needs the scholarship and the future that football provides. But when a beautiful redhead literally falls into his life, his focus is more than tested. It's obliterated.

Dallas doesn't know Carson is on the team. Carson doesn't know that Dallas is his new coach's daughter.

And neither of them know how to walk away from the attraction they feel.

~Review~

I have loved every Cora Carmack book I have read and All Lined Up was no exception. She has an incredible writing style that draws me in and keeps me hooked to the entire time. I love that she creates incredibly strong yet vulnerable female characters and a perfect male counterpart to go along with them. While there's a plot behind every book, what really grabs a hold of me is the relationship she builds between the characters. It is so strong and I am always left wishing I could find something like that in real life.

I absolutely loved Dallas and she is one of the most well rounded characters I have encountered in a while. She is strong, beautiful, outspoken and smart but she is also closed off and feels a bit broken. She has a very strained relationship with her father and it has left her with a lot of bitterness and resentment that she carries around with her. This makes a lot of sense since she grew up without a mother and her father has always been all about football, making her feel second best to him. Despite being a little sheltered by her dad, I loved that she could really hold her own. She isn't afraid to speak her mind and be honest. I think she is so good at doing this with others because she can't really do it with her father. This definitely catches Carter's attention and draws him to her immediately.

I like Carter, a lot. He is such a great character and really the perfect guy that we all strive to find but know doesn't really exist. He is ambitious, hard working, strong and sweet. The way he respects and cherishes Dallas is definitely swoon worthy. I really liked that he wasn't the type of guy to just try and score, that he wanted everything from Dallas, even just friendship if that was all it could be. I also really liked his determination on the field too. He knew what he wanted and he went after it. He worked harder than anyone else, even knowing that his efforts may not even be recognized. He deserved to have a spot on that team and even more, he deserved to have the starting spot and a scholarship. He knew that he needed to focus on football and he knew the possible consequences of dating the coaches daughter but I loved that he risked it all to be with Dallas. he put her ahead of everything else and that is huge for her, especially with the way football has always ruled her life in the past. She never asked him to do it but the fact that he did anyways was incredible.

The way Cora built up their relationship was magnificent. I loved watching Dallas and Carter fall in love and navigate the secret relationship they built. Sometimes you can't really get to know someone when the relationship is built on secrets but they were able to do it because they still let each other in completely. They just couldn't let the rest of the world know. While their "friend" status may not have lasted long, the rules they established for that friendship carried over into their romantic relationship and I think they really made it easy to fall for each other. They were always honest and respectful of each other. Dallas respected Carter's need to train and gain a starting position on the team and he respected her need to take the physical part of their relationship slowly. He never once pressured her and proved to her that his feelings were real. Carter helped open Dallas up bring her out of her bitter shell. He made her a better woman and she made him a better man.

I loved Stella, Dallas' best friend, and I felt she really complimented Dallas. She is her exact opposite but Dallas needed her to help her break her shell a bit and she needed Dallas to calm her crazy. I also liked Ryan, Carter's friend. He pushes him and helps him train and I liked that Carter had that support. I think he and Stella are a book in the making too. While Silas is kind of a dick, I liked the way he stepped up to support Carter and there is definitely hope for him yet. Lastly, I loved the development of the relationship between Dallas and her dad too. They come a long way and in the end and I loved that father/daughter dynamic. I am a daddy's girl myself so seeing her start to build a stronger relationship with her dad was really beautiful.

Overall, I adored this book. I honestly couldn't put it down and I was a little sad when it was over. I loved the pacing and felt like it flowed really well. The characters were well developed and the plot was interesting and captivating. There's something really exciting about forbidden love and Cora really made that shine in All Lined Up. I can't wait for the next book in the Rusk University series!

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE

Cora Carmack Bio:

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

Website ** Twitter ** Facebook ** Author Goodreads 

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All Lined Up Blog Tour Schedule

May 14

#BookNerd-Excerpt
I Read Indie-Review Only
Wolfel’s World of Books-Review Only
Book Vigilante-Review Only
Her Juicy Reads-Review Only
Nestled in a Book-Review Only
Romancing Rakes for the Love of Romance-Review Only
Starbucks N Book Obsession-Review Only
Sam’s Book Basket-Review Only
Broadway Girl Book Reviews-Review Only
Dark Obsession Chronicles-Review Only

May 15

Books Over Boys-Author Interview
Martini Times-Excerpt
Talk Books To Me-DreamCast & Review
Divergent Gryffindor-Review Only
I Dare You to Read-Review Only
My Favorite Things-Review Only
Sassy Divas Book Blog-Review Only
The Book Hammock-Review Only
Three Girls and a Book Obsession-Review Only
Book Drunk Blog-Excerpt
Nicely Phrased-Review Only

May 16

Chick Lit News & Reviews-Guest Post & Review
Vi3tbabe-Review Only
Waves of Fiction-Review Only
Booklovers For Life-Review Only
Mommy’s Late Night Bookup-Review Only
NovelGrounds-Review Only
Short and Sassy Book Blurbs-Review Only
Stay Bookish-Review Only
The Secret Book Brat-Review Only
Krista’s Dust Jacket-Author Interview
Between Order & Randomness-Review Only

May 17

Mundie Moms Guilty Pleasures-Excerpt & Review
Ticket To Anywhere-Review Only
Author Groupies-Review Only
Books to Breathe-Review Only
Grownup Fangirl-Character Interview (Dallas & Carson Together)
Smart & Savvy with Stephanie-Review Only
The Hopeless Romantics-Review Only
The Indie Bookshelf-Review Only
Two Tall Tales-Review Only
With A Book-Review Only

May 18

Book Bitches Blog-Review Only
Reading Between the Wines-Excerpt
Behind Closed Covers-Review Only
Bridger Bitches Book Blog-Review Only
My Book Empire-Review Only
Paperbook Princess-Review Only
Two Ends of a Bookshelf-Review Only
Way Beyond Words-Review Only
The Lovely Books-Review Only

May 19

Katie’s Book Blog-Guest Post & Review
Kindle and Me-Review Only
A Bookish Escape-Review Only
FicWishes-Review Only
Oops I Read Again-Review Only
Step Into Fiction-Review Only
Reading a Little Bit of Everything-Review Only
Sofia Loves Books-Review Only
The Secret Life of a Bookworm-Review Only

May 20

Always YA at Heart-Character Interview (Carson) & Review
My Daily Romance-Review Only
Above Average, Below Special-Review Only
Carver’s Book Cravings-Review Only
Gabic Reads-Review Only
Snuggling on the Sofa-Review Only
The Reading Realm-Review Only
M’s Sinful Reviews-Review Only
One Girl Lost in Romance Books-Review Only

May 21

Books Books Books Blog-Review Only
Nose Stuck in a Book-Guest Post & Review
Books and Swoons-Review Only
Forever Me Romance-Review Only
Made For You Book Reviews-Review Only
The Book Bellas-Review Only
The Book Lovers-Review Only
Books Unhinged-Review Only
Movies Shows N Books-Excerpt

May 22

Cocktails & Books-Author Interview & Review
Stuck in Books-Review Only
BookAngel Booktopia-Review Only
Chapter Break-Review Only
Fiktshun-Review Only
Reese’s Reviews-Review Only
Whirlwind Books-Review Only
LeAnn’s Book Reviews-Review Only
Mrs. Leif’s Two Fangs About It-Review Only

May 23

For the Love of Books by Jaime-Review Only
I *Heart* Big Books-Character Interview (Dallas) & Review
True Story Book Blog-Fun & Different Idea! & Review
Fictitious Delicious-Review Only
Nerd Alert Book Love-Review Only
The YA Bookworm Blogger-Review Only
Confessions of a Librarian in Training-Review Only
Emilie’s Book World-Review Only
Fiona’s Book Reviews-Review Only

May 24

Bibliobelles-Review Only
Nocturne Reads-Review Only
All Romance Reviews-Review Only
Kindle Obsessed-Review Only
Lost in Lit-Review Only
Stuck in YA Books-Review Only
Tarheel Bibliobabe-Review Only
As the Pages Turn-Review Only
Between the Pages-Review Only

May 25

Ramblings From This Chick-Review Only
The Romance Bookie-Review Only
Kimberly Faye Reads-Guest Post
Lit Junkies Book Blog-Review Only
One More Chapter-Review Only
Smokin’ Hot Book Blog-Review Only
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Red Hot + Blue Reads-Review Only
Ali’s Review & More-Review Only

May 26

Bloggers [Heart] Books-Playlist & Review
Once Upon A Twilight-Fun & Different Idea! & Review
Romance Addict-Review Only
Jenuine Cupcakes-Review Only
One Guys Guide to Good Reads-Review Only
Prisoners of Print-Review Only
Worn Down Glories-Review Only
The Unofficial Addiction Book Fan Club-Review Only
Red Cheeks Reads-Review Only