Book review: THE FAULT IN FOREVER, by Claudia Burgoa

I loved this book even though it was very heartbreaking.  It’s full blast angst, all the time, as a ghost from a tragic past comes back to haunt.  So I was in angsty heaven!

Ophelia and Haydn are taking their relationship to a new level, she’s moving in with him, to the house he bought with her in mind.  They have been together five years, and he has fought for their love, helping her get over a past heartbreak that nearly destroyed her.  Now, hopeful for a new happy future, they get a surprise phone call, the man she loved many years ago and believed to be dead, is not only alive, but awake from a five-year coma, and she’s his guardian!

To say that this story is turbulent, full of many tears and guilt and heartbreak is an understatement on the angsty ride it took me on. And I loved every word of it!

All the pain, the survivor’s guilt, the trauma from that loss comes back to the front, and she has more questions than answers.  She didn’t know he was alive, his parents kept her away from him after the accident.  She didn’t know how she came to be his guardian and in charge.  And with all those questions, she and Haydn fly to Keaton’s side to see what had to be done.  This is a crazy love triangle, because one of the three was initially dead, then awoken, and invalid.  Haydn, throughout all this book, was solidly on Ophelia’s side, helping her, watching over her, making sure she rests and eats.  It’s heartbreaking for both of them, more so for Haydn who is now unsure if he will lose the woman who is everything to him.

The author did a great job of releasing snippets of information as the story evolves, so we eventually get a complete picture of all the elements involved in the story.  Just when you think you have it handled, she hands you another whammy, so you start to cry again and wonder what the heck will happen now.  

The pace is slow and reflective, we get to know all the characters feelings and thoughts, but thankfully it moves on a steady pace and you know you’re getting somewhere, hoping for an HEA.  I was all the time Team Haydn, because Keane for all his confusion, memory loss, and lack of strength, was still a entitled and selfish.  He didn’t deserve the girl, IMO!

Lovely, sad, romantic, angsty, and super riveting.

Purchase links

https://geni.us/TFIF 

Available in KU 

About the author

Claudia is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author. 

She writes alluring, thrilling stories about complicated women and the men who take their breaths away. Her books are the perfect blend of steamy and heartfelt, filled with emotional characters and explosive chemistry. Her writing takes readers to new heights, providing a variety of tears, laughs, and shocking moments that leave fans on the edge of their seats.

She lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, her youngest two children, and three fluffy dogs.

When Claudia is not writing, you can find her reading, knitting, or just hanging out with her family. At nights, she likes to binge watches shows or movies with her equally geeky husband.

Connect with Claudia Burgoa:

https://claudiayburgoa.com/wp/links/ 

Book review: FAMOUS LAST WORDS, by Claudia Burgoa

⭐️⭐️⭐️
The first half of this book is full of recriminations, accusations, remorse and guilt.  I like angst but this was more than I like.  Seraphina and Brahms were childhood friends.  After a tragic plane crash that took the life of Seraphina’s siblings and made her father wheelchair-bound, Brahms was her succor.  They clung together and fell in love, until something happened that destroyed what they had and turned into hate for her, guilt for him.

Brahms fell into a downward spiral, had several death-defying accidents, and the last one was severe enough that his family got him into Seraphina’s Rehabilitation Therapy clinic.  She hates Brahms but she’s about to lose her business so she had no other choice.  

Brahms was full of love and guilt towards Seraphina.  She was full of vitriol, she was hateful and vindictive.  It was not happy reading for the first half of the book.  Things began to change halfway into a more positive outlook, where forgiveness was beginning to sound possible.  I had an inkling there was a rat in the works, but the reader is kept in total darkness until about 80% of the story.  

The pace is slow and we are waiting for the truth to come out and for the main characters to achieve forgiveness and start dealing with their trauma.  The story is told in present and past scenes but the transitions were not very smooth, and to be truthful, did not shed a lot of light on their issues.  

When the truth comes out, it’s like a 180º turn, we are all happy and cuddly, cheesy and steamy.  I liked Brahms, found him generous and full of love and kindness.  His addictions were a direct result of his sadness and guilt.  His brothers, who are present in support of their stricken brother, are also nice with various interesting personalities.  I didn’t like Seraphina because she’s stuck on her hate and doesn’t budge, not even to ask for information.  She’s even snarky with her bestie and business partner Blythe! 

Purchase links

Amazon https://amzn.to/47UHG1s

Apple https://apple.co/47Ae6P6

Kobo https://bit.ly/3GkNyFH

B&N https://bit.ly/3QY3EtN

Google Play https://bit.ly/47Rx5oi

About the author

Claudia is an award-winning, USA Today bestselling author.

She writes alluring, thrilling stories about complicated women and the men who take their breaths away. Her books are the perfect blend of steamy and heartfelt, filled with emotional characters and explosive chemistry. Her writing takes readers to new heights, providing a variety of tears, laughs, and shocking moments that leave fans on the edge of their seats.

She lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband, her youngest two children, and three fluffy dogs.

When Claudia is not writing, you can find her reading, knitting, or just hanging out with her family. At nights, she likes to binge watch shows or movies with her equally geeky husband. 

 

Keep up with Claudia Burgoa and subscribe to her newsletter: https://bit.ly/NwsletterCB%20%20

 

To learn more about Claudia Burgoa & her books, visit here!

 

Connect with Claudia Burgoa:

https://claudiayburgoa.com/wp/contact/

 

UNDERTOW, by Alessandra Torre

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
 I read the short story Riptide by this author in the Aloha Anthology for Maui and was intrigued because it was so delicious and naughty.  The short story was like an introduction to this book, so of course, I went on to read it.  And it was just as delicious and naughty!

Madison has two loves, Stewart and Paul.  They are complete opposites, one is an intense businessman, the other is a relaxed surfer.  Both fill different needs in Madison’s psyche and there’s no way she can part with any.  Both men are equally enamored with Madison and they share her heart and her body and her time because they have no choice.  Stewart because he can’t give her all the time and attention she deserves, Paul because he loves her too much to lose her. 

But of course, chaos won’t stay still and eventually a riptide will come that will throw everything apart in the most unexpected way.

This was one electric page-turner, I kept devouring the pages as I read.  It’s the best triangle story I’ve ever read! I liked both men, I had a hard time if she should choose one.  Then I thought, why not keep both?  The writing was brilliant, as I always expect from this author, and the resolution no less than expected.  Throughly enjoyed and recommend!

Purchase links

https://amzn.to/48g3xSa

About the author 

Alessandra Torre is an award-winning New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty novels. Torre has been featured in such publications as Elle and Elle UK, as well as guest-blogged for the Huffington Post and RT Book Reviews. She is also the Bedroom Blogger for Cosmopolitan.com.

In addition to writing, Alessandra is the creator of Alessandra Torre Ink, a website, community, and online school for aspiring authors. Her annual conference is INKERS CON, and is available online or in-person. 

Learn more about Alessandra on her website at www.alessandratorre.com

I WISH I WOULD’VE TOLD YOU, by Whitney G.

 I was gobsmacked when I finished reading this book!  It starts as this frustrating and sad love triangle with one super talented high school football quarterback and twin sisters.  One of the sisters is a talented musician and the other is an influencer.  Two guesses which one is making more money!

There’s a lot of other details that complicate the plot, like the twin sisters’ mother is a vlogger and everything that happens in that house is content for her YouTube vlog.  She can’t be trusted with her cellphone near!  Then the influencer twin has a business deal relation with the footballer but the footballer is in love with the musician twin, so they’re having a relation in secret behind the influencer twin’s back.  Talk about convoluted schemes!

The story was highly entertaining, at the same time it was heartbreaking.  I hurt for Scarlett every time that Easton spent with Tully.  The action and the suspense of what would happen with these three kept creeping up until a plot twist that really gave me whiplash.

I loved the story but felt that the triangle portion went on too long and the resolution was too short.  I felt cheated out of more good times towards the end, and also a resolution on the other characters introduced during the story.  It felt like their plot arc wasn’t finished.  Still, it was a fantastic read, I loved it, as I like all this author’s writing.  And I also got a kick out of the random letters sent to schoolmates and teachers spouting out her truths.

Purchase links

https://bit.ly/3OqH2kj

About the author

Whitney G. is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author. Her  books are currently published in over a dozen languages.

 

She lives deep in the Tennessee woods and spends most of her time drinking coffee while penning dirty-talking alpha males.

 

Find out more about her next project at www.whitneygbooks.com

 

(Be sure to sign up for "The F.L.Y. List" as that's the best way to receive new release updates. Link: eepurl.com/hbhVOf )

 

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR

 

Website https://www.whitneygbooks.com/

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6518370.Whitney_G_

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

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/whitneyg.author/

 

Book review: A DIVIDED HEART, by Alessandra Torre

 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 2023 favorite!

Wow, riveting!  It starts like a lovely romance between two uber rich (but not entitled!) wonderful characters, turns erotic (yum!),  then the doubts and the questions start racking in.  The story gathers speed and so did my heartbeat.  At one moment, I swear I almost had a heart attack, I was so tense and scared.  The suspense was killing me!  

You need to dive into this book blind.  Just know that Layana is a trust fund baby, but not the entitled, trophy wife wanna-be type.  She wants to live life on her terms, she’s intelligent, and she makes it happen.  She’s on a journey to find herself and I liked that she analyses what she does and where she’s going, in order to live the live she wants, not the one her mother wants for her.  When she met Brant, it’s like the universe told her: he’s the one.  Intriguing, a genius in the tech world, he carries the assurance of who he is but he’s not arrogant and cocky.  

“But this man ... he had a combination of intelligence with confidence and intrigue, all mixed in a martini glass of strikingly handsome looks.”

Layana and Brant are different from their peers; they care, they have a moral code, they love big. Their love is so strong, it felt indestructible.  The author takes us on a roller coaster of emotions, she broke my heart, then mended it again, although the sadness still lingered a little.  There are a lot of chapters, but each one is necessary.  It’s a story that needs to be told in all the details.  In Alessandra Torre’s brilliant and perfect writing, the chapters fly by, and the nail biting increases. There’s a perfect pace, a perfect balance of prose and dialogue, a wealth of information that needs to be given in just the perfect manner.  It’s truly a work of art and suspense, with a wonderful plot twist that left me agog, and of course, all I needed in an HEA.  Just brilliant!

Purchase links

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3YKIzGD

Amazon Non-US: https://books2read.com/u/4jBAav

Free in Kindle Unlimited

About the author 

Alessandra Torre is an award-winning New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty novels. Torre has been featured in such publications as Elle and Elle UK, as well as guest-blogged for the Huffington Post and RT Book Reviews. She is also the Bedroom Blogger for Cosmopolitan.com.

In addition to writing, Alessandra is the creator of Alessandra Torre Ink, a website, community, and online school for aspiring authors. Her annual conference is INKERS CON, and is available online or in-person. 

Learn more about Alessandra on her website at www.alessandratorre.com