"Save me and I'll save you..."~ Review: Nocte by Courtney Cole

Author: Courtney Cole

Publisher: Lakehouse Press, Inc.

Publication Date: November 3, 2014

Genre: Mystery

Source: Purchased via Amazon

~Synopsis~

Save me and I'll save you...

My name is Calla Price. I’m eighteen years old, and I’m one half of a whole. 
My other half-- my twin brother, my Finn-- is crazy. 

I love him. More than life, more than anything. And even though I’m terrified he’ll suck me down with him, no one can save him but me.

I’m doing all I can to stay afloat in a sea of insanity, but I’m drowning more and more each day. So I reach out for a lifeline. 

Dare DuBray. 

He’s my savior and my anti-Christ. His arms are where I feel safe, where I’m afraid, where I belong, where I’m lost. He will heal me, break me, love me and hate me. 

He has the power to destroy me. 

Maybe that’s ok. Because I can’t seem to save Finn and love Dare without everyone getting hurt. 

Why? Because of a secret. 

A secret I’m so busy trying to figure out, that I never see it coming. 

You won’t either.

~Review~

Holy crap! This book blew me out of the water. I love Courtney Cole; she is a talented writer who has proved to me that she can cross any genre and slay it. Nocte was so much different than anything I have read from her and I was enchanted. I couldn't put this book down; I couldn't stop until I hit the very end. I have been awakened, brought out of my new adult/romance hole and enlightened to how much I truly enjoy a good thriller/mystery.

Calla and Finn are twins. They have that connection that only twins can understand and they do anything and everything together. But Finn suffers. Finn fights the voices in his head. Finn needs Calla. In the wake of a tragedy, Calla struggles with guilt and fear. She knows Finn is slipping and she isn't sure how to save him. When Calla meets Dare, she is instantly drawn to him. She knows he is drawn to her too but he fights it. He is hiding something, something that clearly has to do with her. However, for the first time in her life, she feels free; she feels like her own person. Finn loves Calla and he doesn't want to hold her back but he also feels jealousy. He needs her and Dare will take her away. The louder the voices get, the more secrets are revealed. Finn's hiding something and when Calla finds out, it changes everything.

This book is a total mind twist. It is unpredictable and full of mystery. I wanted to keep reading simply to find out what the hell everyone is hiding. Dare has secrets. Finn has secrets and I want to know them all. I felt Calla's desperation and Finn's loss of control as if they were my own. Courtney Cole pulls you into the story, makes you the characters and drives you mad until the very end. The writing was incredible, the plot was thick and well developed. There is a cliff hanger and while I hate them, I can't be mad at Courtney for it because this is a mystery series and she has to keep us on our toes. Verum comes out in 62 days (yes, I'm counting) and I'm impatiently waiting.

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE

Blog Tour Review + Giveaway: Last Breath by Jessica Clare & Jen Frederick

Today is my stop on the blog tour for Last Breath by Jessica Clare & Jen Frederick, hosted by TRSOR Promotions. Check out my review and enter the giveaway!

Last Breath

(Hitman #2)

Author: Jessica Clare & Jen Frederick

Publisher: Pear Tree L.L.C

Publication Date: March 24, 2014

Genre: Contemporary/Suspense

Source: eARC via TRSOR Tours

~Synopsis~

Regan

I never really knew what misery was until the day I was kidnapped and sold for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Two months later, I'm at a brothel in Rio when I meet Daniel Hays. He says he's here to save me, but can I trust him? All I know of him are his sarcastic retorts and his tendency to solve every dispute with his gun. He's also the only safe thing in my world, and I know it's wrong to fall in love with him, but I can't seem to help myself. He says he’ll protect me until his last breath but I don’t know if I should believe him or even if I can. 


Daniel

For the last eighteen months, I’ve had one goal: to find my kidnapped sister. I’ve left the Army, turned paid hit man, and have befriended criminals all across the globe. In every brothel I raid or every human trafficking truck I stop, her face is the one I’m desperate to see. In Rio, I find Regan Porter, bruised but not broken and still sane despite her weeks in hell. I should leave her behind or send her home because the last thing either of us needs is to get involved. But with every passing minute, I find I can’t let her go.

~Review~

Oh man, I freaking loved this book. I really enjoyed Last Hit but Last Breath blew it out of the water. Daniel and Regan are two kick ass characters and they definitely go to hell and back together but when they come out on the other side, they are both so much stronger. I have to admit, I wasn’t sure how I would handle this book since sexual assault is a subject that I’m not always comfortable with. As a warning, it’s a bit tough in the beginning and while I think Jen and Jessica handled it well, it still may not be for everyone.

Regan has had the worst 2 months of her life and after being sold into sex slavery, she is barely holding on. I could not even imagine what she has been through and I was super amazed by how strong she was. She is definitely not unaffected and will be scarred for life but she is a fighter and she never went down without a fight. Daniel is a total badass and I am seriously in love with him. He is a deadly assassin but he has such a big heart and I love the way he protects and cares for Regan. He knows how fragile she is and the way he handles her with such care and concern was incredible.

Daniel and Regan have a really great relationship and from the beginning there is definitely a connection between them. Despite all she’s been through, Regan feels the pull and it really scares her. After everything she’s been through, how can she ever trust another man? However, as soon as she knows that Daniel is there to save her, she can’t help but trust him. He becomes a lifeline for her and that really helps her stay strong and heal. I loved the way Daniel helped Regan gain back control and discover pleasure again. I’m sure she felt like damaged goods and thought she would never be able to enjoy sex again. They care and gentleness he showed her was incredible and I loved the way he used humor to help her feel comfortable. Also, Daniel is quite a dirty talker and the scenes between he and Regan were pretty steamy. Ok, REALLY steamy!

One of the things that I really loved was how well balanced the action and romance was in this book. It was definitely full of suspense and there were some fantastic action scenes. It was great to see Regan and Daniel build a relationship and fall for each other while fleeing and fighting for their lives. They really worked well together and I loved Regan’s growth and how brave she was in the end. I was impressed with her selflessness and the way she put her life on the line for Daniel.

Overall, this was a fabulous read for me and I was riveted the entire time. I liked the way Jen and Jessica handled the tough subject of the book and I felt like the characters were very well developed. I also really liked the plot and felt like it flowed well and kept me interested the entire time. I think Jessica and Jen are amazing authors and they make an incredible writing duo.

PURCHASE LINKS:

AMAZON

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

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 jensfrederick@gmail.com.

Website: http://jenfrederick.com/blog/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jensfred

Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/p3ptasx

Author Jessica Claire

This is a pen name for Jill Myles.

Jill Myles has been an incurable romantic since childhood. She reads all the 'naughty parts' of books first, looks for a dirty joke in just about everything, and thinks to this day that the Little House on the Prairie books should have been steamier.

After devouring hundreds of paperback romances, mythology books, and archaeological tomes, she decided to write a few books of her own - stories with a wild adventure, sharp banter, and lots of super-sexy situations. She prefers her heroes alpha and half-dressed, her heroines witty, and she loves nothing more than watching them overcome adversity to fall into bed together.

Website: http://jillmyles.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJessicaClare?directed_target_id=0

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_JessicaClare

Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/q4272wf

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Review: Lethal by Sandra Brown

Lethal

Author: Sandra Brown

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Publication Date: September 20, 2011

~Synopsis~

When her four year old daughter informs her a sick man is in their yard, Honor Gillette rushes out to help him. But that "sick" man turns out to be Lee Coburn, the man accused of murdering seven people the night before. Dangerous, desperate, and armed, he promises Honor that she and her daughter won't be hurt as long as she does everything he asks. She has no choice but to accept him at his word.

But Honor soon discovers that even those close to her can't be trusted. Coburn claims that her beloved late husband possessed something extremely valuable that places Honor and her daughter in grave danger. Coburn is there to retrieve it -- at any cost. From FBI offices in Washington, D.C., to a rundown shrimp boat in coastal Louisiana, Coburn and Honor run for their lives from the very people sworn to protect them, and unravel a web of corruption and depravity that threatens not only them, but the fabric of our society.

~Review~

I love Sandra Brown and have read many of her books over the years and own many of them as well. She is a fantastic thriller writer and Lethal did not disappoint in that department. She introduces so many different characters and shrouds them all in just enough mystery that even when I think I have it all figured out, I am always blown away at the end. My only disappointment in this book was the ending. I felt unsatisfied when I was finished.

Lee Coburn is an excellent hero and I love his character. I questioned his motives and actions from the beginning and, per Sandra Brown's style, I was never really sure if he was who he said he was but knew there was more than meets the eye to him. It was obvious that he was attracted to Honor from the moment he saw her and he held a soft spot in his heart for her daughter. He wasn't one to care about anybody else but himself so his actions with Honor and Emily spoke volumes.

I really liked Honor and thought she was very smart, courageous and strong. She had to think not only about herself but also about her daughter and I think that she kept a very level head. She had so many life altering revelation thrust upon her and she handled herself remarkably well. She had to choose between trusting someone she barely knew and people she had known her whole life. In the end, she used her instinct with each decision and made the right choices to protect herself, her daughter and her husband's memory. 

Overall, I really did enjoy Lethal. It was intriguing and thrilling and left me questioning every character until the very end. As usual with Sandra Brown's books, I had no idea who The Bookkeeper was until the end and even when they were revealed, I could not look back through the book and see any hints that would have given it away. I was truly surprised by the turn of events. The only reason why I gave this a 3 star was because I was, personally, disappointed with the way it ended. If I'm not completely satisfied at the end, I can't fully enjoy the experience of reading the book. 

~Quote~

“But I'm not a hearts and flowers guy. I'm not even an all-night guy. I don't hold hands. I don't cuddle. I don't do any of that stuff." “You don't have to give me flowers, Coburn. You don't even have to hold me. Let me hold you." ~Lee & Honor (Lethal by Sandra Brown)

~IPOD Picks~

"Under Pressure" by Queen

"Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler & Meatloaf

Sources

Synopsis: Goodreads

Cover Photo: Goodreads