The Mighty Storm (book 1 && 2)

Midterms will be the death of me! But I did read a couple books in the past week, worthy of writing about. So those will each have a short review, recap sorta thing..

The Mighty Storm (2 books)

BY: SAMANTHA TOWLE

✰✰✰✰✰ FIVE MIGHTY STARS

The Mighty Storm and Wethering the Storm, by Samantha Towle, are about Jake Wethers, lead singer of the international super-famous band The Mighty Storm (TMS) and Trudy (Tru) Bennett, music journalist. Here's the blurb for the first one: (you can basically see where it's going from there)

Jake Wethers, sexy, tattooed and deliciously bad lead singer, and brains behind The Mighty Storm, one of the biggest bands in the world, left Tru with a broken heart when he moved from England to America with his family when they were both fourteen.

Sent to interview Jake for her music column by the magazine she works for, they are both unprepared for the sparks that fly the instant they reconnect. Only, there’s a complication to their instant feelings for one another—Will, Tru’s boyfriend of two years. 

Then Jake makes Tru a job offer she can't refuse—travelling the world with him and his band. But taking the job means leaving Will behind, and being on the road with the band means spending an inordinate amount of time with Jake.

Sooo.. yeahhhh...

What's Tru to do? I'd be all over Jake too!

"Jake - a sweet dream? Or a beautiful nightmare?"

Honestly, this was a reread for me. I saw back on goodreads that I'd given the books 5 stars, which is pretty rare for me, so I decided to reread the books once again. And it was amazing!! Jake and Tru are so sweet together; and I'm a sucker for rekindled romance, it's the absolute best! The writing was incredibly easy to follow, and it's first person POV from Tru's side. Buttt!! the second book has POV from Jake as well, not too much, but enough to make him even more swoonworthy than he already is!

The only thing that I didn't like was in the first book: the cheating. I don't tolerate cheating in "real life" and I really don't like to see it in books either - and Will was such a nice guy, Tru really hurt him. I didn't like the fact that after he found out that Tru and Jake were sleeping together behind his back he was made out to be psycho and the bad guy.. because he wasn't. I sympathize with him. I always say and I'll say it again: If you're thinking about cheating, break up with your current boyfriend/girlfriend first. It's not fair to them, and it's not fair to the person you're cheating with, and lastly, it's not fair to you. Sooo much can be solved with communication.

SEX.                                              

                   

                        ROCK 'N' ROLL.

                     

DRUGS.

"Reznor's version or Johnny Cash's"

"Johnny Cash ... I have a few things in common with him."

"Like?"

"The drugs ... the women ... hanging out for the girl of my dreams ... you're my June, Tru."

I truly forgot how amazing these books were; a wild ride. You had the good, you had the bad. and you had a whole lot of in-between. 

Best friends to lovers. "The word is that Jake has found 'the one'. His girl next-door."

Drama.

Traveling with the band. (And I'm not gonna lie, i love the groupies. The drama they bring, and the guy choosing his girl. Swoon. I'm such a girl.)

By the end, you really see that they both need one another to survive. Wait for itt.... : Their love is their drug. (clicheness ;) And trust me, I'm pretty feministic, independence and all, but here, it just worked. And this isn't real life, so bugger off.

Summary:

Book: The Mighty Storm, Wethering the Storm

Author: Samantha Towle

Steam (out of 5): ♥♥♥♥♥

Likeable characters: hero; Jake: ✓ , heroine; Trudy ✓ (she was kinda annoying in her head, but overall it wasn't too bad that you couldn't look past it)

Writing: amazing!

Was this a reread? Yes.

Other books in the series? Yes, Tom's book will be released this year!

Sex. Drug abuse. Death. Cheating. Rockstar lifestyle. Sex in public places. and Pizza Hut.

Love is just a word until someone comes along and gives it meaning

Forever With You (Fixed; #3)

FOREVER WITH YOU BY: LAURELIN PAIGE

(#3 IN FIXED TRILOGY)

"Oh the web we weave, when first we decide to deceive."

I couldn't help myself. And personally, I think this quote encompasses this third and final book in the Fixed trilogy.

The mystery is finally revealed, and let me tell you, it really surprised me! I can usually predict what's going to happen, but this came out of no where for me. Needless to say, if I thought outside the box, then maybe I'd get it sooner, but I didn't and it surprised me, and it was awesome! (when the time came)

So... Hudson and Alayna are together and totally in love with each other and there are no more secrets: honesty and transparency is the key. Well, for Alayna it is. Hudson on the other hand... Uh yeah, not really. He's still hiding his secrets and won't disclose anything to Alayna.

The first half of the book was slow and really kinda boring. Nothing really happened other than:
"Hudson what are you hiding?"
"Nothing"
...
"Hudson"
"Yes"
"Honesty and transparency"
"I can't tell you everything"
...
"Hudson are you lying?"
"No" but yeah.
you get the jist.

And guess what, after two whole books, there's still no ily. "The man couldn't say I love you."
And when Hudson finally says the three coveted words... not once, but twice!

OMG HE SAID I LOVE YOU.
took him long enough.

The second half did it for me. Hudson has demons, he's fighting his past. His past always comes to bite him in the ass. And Alayna's ass too, unfortunately. Speaking of which..


CELIA WERNER: hated that bitch. EXCUSE MY FRENCH. But she was horrible and would never quit. It got to the point where I didn't want to finish the book anymore because I couldn't stand seeing her name!

I present to you: Miss Celia Werner.









THE SEX: So, I got fed up* with the steamy scenes in the second book; it was just too much for me to handle. Way too much sex, combined with zero communication = I can't continue this way.
*I skipped every sex scene in this book. Just wanted to get that out there. (That's not to say there was a lot; there was actually very little compared to the previous books, but I just couldn't get myself to read about the same scenes over and over again)

**It is explained in this book why there is so much sex; "With us, it was speech. Which might have something to do with why we still had such trouble talking to each other." Sounds about right!

But I will say, this book did have communication (finally) and at least in the second half, we were able to see that Huds and Laynie didn't need sex in order to be in a relationship. They actually talked. OH AND THEN THEY BROKE UP. 

No sex => break up. And Alayna's miserable. And so is Hudson. But this is the way it has to be. Blah blah blah blah blah.

But it's okay because the last 20% of the book was really good. I felt like I was watching a suspense film!

And the epilogue: IT'S FROM HUDSON'S POV! and it's presh. *precious

  Alayna's constant condescension toward herself really upset me. She depends on Hudson and without him, she truly feels as if she can't go on. I don't know if that's what everyone in love feels like, but I don't. INDEPENDENCE is key. Yes, you have a boyfriend, but don't lose who you are.

Alayna's words:
"In many ways I didn't deserve it."
"But I would never betray him again. I'd grown past that."
"With a sinking horror, I feared that Jordan was right -- Hudson's feelings for me were obvious. Obviously gone."
I sense a pattern.

"dammit, feelings were confusing."

"The problem with secrets -- anything was potentially the truth." (One of my favorites!)

My favorite character was Mira! Absolutely love that girl! She's hilarious and snarky and now with her pregnancy hormones.. She's the best!!!

Found In You (Fixed Trilogy #2)

FOUND IN YOU BY: LAURELIN PAIGE

But but but... It started out so good...

After reading Fixed in You (book #1 in the Fixed trilogy) and loving it, I was hooked. I wanted to know what happens with Hudson and Alayna. Two tortured souls with similar pasts. Manipulation, deceiving, lies.. they all added to the oomph that was Alayna and Hudson.

Found in You did not disappoint, don't take me the wrong way. It's just that it didn't live up to my expectations, which I know isn't right to judge a book by.

But my first complaint, which was HUGE was the SEX. I love SMUT. I adore it. I love it. I can't really read a book without it. Yes, I'm guilty. But, there's a point where it is too much and I think that line was definitely crossed in this book. There is such a thing as too much. Unfortunately. I don't like it when two characters have issues in a book, yet always resort to having sex to overcome said issues. No. Just, no. Sex isn't going to solve all your issues. TALK. Communicate with one another and lay everything on the line. There was so much that could have been solved just by talking. If they literally just sat and were like "So hey.. We said we're gonna be honest with one another.. These are my cards." everything would have been great! But no, it was more like "Hey, I know there's something you're not telling me. Why? -- Proceed with makeout session that leads to steamy sex". That irked me so much and is the reason I had to drop it 1.5 stars.

"'I don't want this, Hudson. I don't want it!' I turned to run away. Where, I didn't know. Just away from him and the terrible situation he was putting me in. But, I'd only made it a few steps when he came after me, his arms circling around my waist from behind...  'No. I'll never let you go.' He must not have meant physically, because he did let me go. He threw me on the couch and began undoing his pants."

Me:

Also, Hudson wasn't able to say the word "love" throughout the entire book. Not once. Which I understand. But I think at some point in this book he should've been able to tell Alayna rather than show her. And you could tell that Alayna was wanting it, the entire time.

Celia Warren: GET OVER YOURSELF. Seriously, like now.

I knew Celia wasn't genuine. I could feel it in my bones! From the beginning, I was always saying she is so full of s**t and hey, I was right. I really just wanted to punch her in the face.

But to be honest, most of the Celia problems would be solved if Hudson and Alayna just talked to each other!

The whole scenario with Jack though completely threw me off, so not expecting that plot twist at all. Two thumbs up for that one! And trust me, a jealous alpha male = completely swoonworthy. But I still think that Hudson should have told Alayna about it, even if it wasn't "his secret to tell". Relationships only work when both parties are honest with one another.

And Sophia?
That woman needs help.
Hey Sophia, YOU NEED HELP.


Overall though, I can't say I didn't enjoy reading it. I did. And I will probably read the next, (and last) one in the trilogy. There were just kinks and some plot choices could've been made to better the book.

The writing was very easy to get through, no complaints there!

I still love you Hudson

"There's a funny thing about 20/20 hindsight."
And just cause I thought the gif below was hilarious!

Fixed On You (Fixed trilogy #1)

FIXED ON YOU BY: LAURELIN PAIGE

(book one in the trilogy: Fixed)

Hmm... Where to start with this one?

This definitely had me reading nonstop; I couldn't put the book down! But that's not to say that the storyline is completely original (but, to be honest, most aren't nowadays). Let's see.Billionaire, handsome, emotionally detached hero with a past? Check. Insecure heroine, with her own past, who finds herself unconsciously falling for the hero? Check. A love that's not going to work because of the protagonist's pasts and the intrusion of family members? Check. Sound somewhat familiar?

Although the story wasn't original, there were aspects to it that were and that's what drew me to this story.


Stalking and restraining orders are a thing of Alayna Wither’s past. With her MBA newly in hand, she has her future figured out—move up at the nightclub she works at and stay away from any guy who might trigger her obsessive love disorder. A perfect plan.

But what Alayna didn’t figure on is Hudson Pierce, the new owner of the nightclub. He’s smart, rich, and gorgeous—the kind of guy Alayna knows to stay away from if she wants to keep her past tendencies in check. Except, Hudson’s fixed his sights on her. He wants her in his bed and makes no secret of it.

Avoiding him isn’t an option after he offers a business proposition she can’t turn down and she’s drawn further into his universe, unable to resist his gravitational pull. When she learns Hudson has a dark history of his own, she realizes too late that she’s fallen for the worst man she could possibly get involved with. Or maybe their less than ideal pasts give them an opportunity to heal each other and finally find the love their lives have been missing. 


I hadn't read a book before where the characters had the same pasts as in this book. Of course there were brutal family members who didn't approve of the arrangement (cough Hudson's mom Sophiathebitch cough), but Alayna has stalker tendencies. When she fall, she falls hard and her paranoia eats at her which is why she becomes obsessive with the guys she dates. Hudson on the other hand, had a very different past. His secret is[ that he manipulates women into falling in love with when he has absolutely no feelings towards them and once the woman has fallen deep for him, he cuts them off and goes on in life without a care as to what happened to the woman. And he's done this many times, especially to Celia, whom he feels extreme guilt for until now. (hide spoiler)] BUT... he doesn't want to hurt Alayna, he wants to move on and be with her; he wants to break his ways.




Their journey begins with a proposition:
"I need you to break up an engagement." 

So their pretend relationship begins. Two people broken by their pasts who don't think they can love freely embark in a fake relationship.

The first 25-30% really was slow for me, not gonna lie. Alayna was way too indecisive and basically gave all power to Hudson. She's basically turn into goo in his hands and if he asked to jump off a bridge, she probably would. Personally, I love when a guy has alpha male characteristics, and Hudson was amazing! His possessiveness and commanding nature was great and he made the story for me; I wouldn't mind myself some Hudson Pierce! But I would've loved to see Alayna stand up for herself more and not be as insecure as she was: A girl with a backbone is actually really hot, let's be honest I know she had problems and all, but she basically let him do anything with her and happily went to his"fuck pad" with him without any protests. A little more backbone would be nice.



Mind you, the story in this book takes place in the span of around 3 weeks.
He sees her. She sees him. They formally meet. (One week gone). 
He propositions. She accepts. They canoodle and start their love affair, fake relationship. (Second week gone). 
She gets paranoid. Secrets come out. They break up, they make up. . THE ENDING which I LOVED by the way . And that's a wrap!

Soooo... Although I had some ehh moments, I really did enjoy this one and couldn't put it down. I haven't read much of the alpha/rich guy with the insecure heroine since the Beg series (which didn't cut it for me) and the Crossfire series. So if you just wrapped up Crossfire or FSOG or the Stark Trilogy or anything similar.. I'd say read something else and come back to this in a couple months. But if not, pick this up because the sex scenes are steamy enough to fog up the glass and the ending is really nice; kinda rushed, but nice. BUT HEY, there's a SECOND and THIRD book!!! Which I will definitely be reading! 

Pick it up, you won't regret it!




  

Favorite parts that stuck:
I apologize for overwhelming you. That wasn't my intent. But I want you to know that whether or not you decide to help with my situation, I will continue to seduce you. I'm a man who gets what he wants. And I want you."

"We were both vulnerable now. Two damaged souls spilling our brokenness in a private therapy session. Was this what he had wanted between us? Sharing like this, without judgment, without shame? It was ... nice."

"I wanted to win you. But I didn't want to hurt you."

"That that's what we were feeling. That it was love.
It was. It is.
Hmm. I never felt this before. I didn't know" 

4/5 PIERCING ;) STARS because it was captivating. and I want you Hudson Pierce. Can't wait for the next book!