Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Blog Tour Review: Everything Between Us by Mila Ferrera


Today, I have the tour for Everything Between Us tour on the blog. This was a surprising read and I loved that it wasn't at all what I expected. Check out my review below.

To follow the rest of the tour, click here or on the tour banner above.

Everything Between Us
Author: Mila Ferrera
Publisher: Mila Ferrera Books
Publication Date: November 5, 2013
Genre: New Adult/Contemporary
Source: eARC via Xpresso Book Tours

~Synopsis~
Daniel’s got everything figured out. He makes a good living as an artist ... mostly through offering "private shows" to the wives of local wealthy businessmen. He never stops playing the game and never lets anyone touch his heart. But when his current fling offers him a few hundred an hour for art lessons for her reclusive, college-dropout daughter, Daniel finds himself forgetting his own rules. The girl is rude. Insulting. Incredible.

And she sees straight through him.

Stella is hiding from the world, not because she wants to, but because crippling panic attacks await her every time she tries to live a normal life. She's determined to push everyone--including her handsome new art teacher—away. But Daniel makes it utterly impossible. The guy is irritating. Mocking. Magnetic.

And makes her want things she knows she can never have.

What starts as a battle of wills turns into passion, where giving in means facing the things that scare them most.


~Review~

One of my favorite things about this book was the unique topic covered. I’m always looking for an NA that breaks from the norm and picks focuses on something outside of the typical issues. Everything Between Us did just that. Neither character suffers from a tragic or broken past, but instead, they are dealing with fears and insecurities that they both must overcome.

Stella is so strong and she doesn’t even know it. She has had to give up everything because of this fear that lives inside her. The worst part is her parents are unsupportive and they don’t understand what she is going through. It is obvious how difficult the anxiety had become for her and how much it tears her apart. My heart wrenched for Stella because she so badly wants to be free but the panic and fear inside her constrains her so much. I couldn't even imagine feeling so helpless and terrified to step outside.

Daniel comes off as confident and self-assured but really it is a façade he puts on to hide his insecurities about never being good enough. He doesn’t put himself behind his art because he fears rejection and if people don’t like his art, he won’t feel like they are rejecting him. He is a gorgeous man and women always want him for his looks, especially older, rich women. I think this feeds his insecurities because they don’t really want his art, they want his body. He wants to be taken seriously because art is a part of who he is.

I loved the way Daniel and Stella help each other come alive. Stella desperately wants to have a normal life with Daniel and this propels her to work towards healing her anxiety and finding a way to cope. I loved that Daniel didn’t make her feel less for her issues but instead supported her. If it wasn’t for him, she would never have found the strength to get back on her feet and overcome. As much as Daniel helped Stella, she freed him as well. She always saw right through him to the real person underneath the man he pretended to be. She made him a better man and showed him who he really was deep down inside.

I really enjoyed the interactions between Stella and Daniel. It wasn’t love at first sight and I loved that she didn’t easily fall for his charm and act. It was really fun to see him thrown off guard by Stella and try to figure her out. I was glad that he didn’t judge her when he realized her true anxiety and the fact that he worked so hard to help her was beautiful. There is definitely so much more to Daniel than he lets most people see but he could always be his real self with Stella because she saw right through him. I was amazed that Stella could get past the fact that Daniel had been with her mother because that would have honestly been hard for me. As Stella got help, she kind of pushed Daniel away and that made me sad because it was obvious he really wanted to be with her and help her. It frustrated me a few times but I had to put myself in her shoes and I could understand that she didn’t want him to view her as weak. She wanted him to see her when she was strong and she worked really hard to get there. I couldn’t imagine trying to overcome the obstacles that Stella faced. She definitely wouldn’t have been able to do it without Daniel.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and the uniqueness behind the plot. The fear that Stella faced is very real and happens to many people in real life. I couldn’t imagine having the type of anxiety she suffered and this was truly a story about strength and overcoming. Caleb and Romy are good friends to Daniel and Romy really helps Daniel with Stella and becomes a great friend to her. They have their own story and I am really looking forward to reading it.

~IPOD Picks~
"Before It's Too Late" by Boyce Avenue
"This I Promise You" By Anthem Lights


PURCHASE LINKS:

AUTHOR BIO:
Mila Ferrera lives in New England, where she has a family and a job and does various normal, everyday things, all while plotting novels in her head. She has a passion for writing new adult/adult romance featuring psychological twists and tortured heroes. Her own psychology internship involved plenty of consultation, but alas, no sexy Swedish doctors, and her decision to make one up is what sparked her self-publishing adventures. She's the author of SPIRAL (available now), ONLY BETWEEN US (9/3/13), and EVERYTHING BETWEEN US (11/5/13).

Author Links:


*An eARC was provided to me in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed are my own and unbiased.*



12 comments:

  1. I just commented over on Jess' review of this book and I will say it again here. I think this one sounds really good and I like how it seems to be a bit different. I also like the toned back muscles on the cover, wouldn't be a CeCe comment if I didn't throw in a little perverted note : D

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  2. Great review! I am so glad you mentioned that it is different from a lot of other NA books. I read so much NA that I am always looking for something that breaks the norm

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  3. Great review, Chelsea! Stella and Daniel's relationship sounds great and it's refreshing that it's not insta love! It's also great to know there can still be originality in this genre! :)

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  4. Yikes, he had been with her mother! I'd find it impossible to get my head around that. I love that it breaks the NA mould a bit though and yay for no insta-love.

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  5. Great review my tour twinkie! I really ended up enjoying this one despite the fact I heard some not so great things about it. My heart broke for Stella and Daniel and I'm so glad they could make it work and that they had patience with one another.

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  6. Great review! I love how this ones stands out for you, with it not being the typical NA romance. Will def be adding this one :)

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  7. I really liked the storyline and the challenges that Stella faces were unique and not something I've come across before so I really liked that. LOL, you and me both CeCe :-)

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  8. Thanks girl! I like reading one with a little different character background. Sometimes the same old thing gets tedious and I burn out.

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  9. Thank you! I am so over insta-love so it's so nice to find a book every once and a while that doesn't include it.

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  10. LOL, yeah, I had a hard time getting past that because if I was Stella, I'm not sure I could just let it go. However, Daniel is worth it :-)

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  11. LOL, I love that we share so many of the same tours. It always makes me smile to see your name on the list. There were times when I almost teared up when Stella would put her hands up to the glass. I couldn't imagine suffering from that!

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  12. Thanks chica! I know you always need one out of the box to keep you sane :-)

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Thank you for your comment, you have truly made my day! I love reading and discussing other's thoughts and ideas. Leave a link to your blog and I would love to stop by!