Mini Reviews: Upside Down by Lia Riley; Price of a Kiss by Linda Kage; & Last Will and Testament by Dahlia Adler

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Title: Upside Down
Author: Lia Riley
Published: August 5th 2014
Source: Won from Giveaway
Genre: New Adult Romance
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Caution: May contain spoilers

If You Never Get Lost, You’ll Never Be Found

Twenty-one-year-old Natalia Stolfi is saying good-bye to the past-and turning her life upside down with a trip to the land down under. For the next six months, she'll act like a carefree exchange student, not a girl sinking under the weight of painful memories. Everything is going according to plan until she meets a brooding surfer with hypnotic green eyes and the troubling ability to see straight through her act.

Bran Lockhart is having the worst year on record. After the girl of his dreams turned into a nightmare, he moved back home to Melbourne to piece his life together. Yet no amount of disappointment could blind him to the pretty California girl who gets past all his defenses. He's never wanted anyone the way he wants Talia. But when Bran gets a stark reminder of why he stopped believing in love, he and Talia must decide if what they have is once in a lifetime . . . or if they were meant to live a world apart.

My Thoughts:

Wow. I'm at a loss for words. I had heard how amazing this book (actually the whole series) is, but nothing prepared me for what I was given. Talia and Bran were spectacular. The way they fit together, understood each other, and cared was beyond expectation. I found myself tearing up near the end, not to mention a few heartwrenching moments not long before that. Talia's OCD was very well represented, I could feel her struggle as though it were my own. I just, wow. Great start to the series and I'm looking forward to reading more of these gorgeous words by Lia Riley.

My Rating:

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Title: Price of a Kiss
Author: Linda Kage
Published: August 15th 2013
Source: Purchased
Genre: New Adult Romance
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Caution: May contain spoilers

I don’t care what my cousin says; I am not the queen of impossible relationships. I mean, just because my last boyfriend tried to kill me and left a bit of a scar on my neck, then forced me to move across the country and legally change my name to Reese Randall to escape him, does not mean—

Oh, who am I kidding? For a freshman in college, I have to have the worst dating track record ever.

It’s no wonder love is the last thing on my mind when Mason Lowe enters my life. But the chemistry between us is like bam! Our connection defies logic. And he’s just so freaking hot. Being around him makes me feel more alive than I’ve ever felt before. I even like bickering with him. He could be my soul mate...except for one teeny tiny glitch.

He's a gigolo.

Boy, do I know how to pick them.

My Thoughts:

I signed up to read another book in Linda Kage's Forbidden Men series, With Every Heartbeat, and thought it was great. One night when I was scrolling through my ereader, I found this one that I'd downloaded awhile back. I started reading a few pages...and ended up reading the whole thing, keeping me up until nearly 4AM! I was so captivated by Reese and Mason's story, the way their lives were, how they intersected. They're two people who are meant to be, yet they can't just be. Not without losing everything else important in their lives. I loved how it all wove together, and even though some aspects may cause some to get upset, I completely understood the importance of them in telling the story. Price of a Kiss is a shining example of the new adult category!

My Rating:

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Title: Last Will and Testament
Author: Dahlia Adler
Published: December 9th 2014
Source: Purchased
Genre: New Adult Romance
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Caution: May contain spoilers

Lizzie Brandt was valedictorian of her high school class, but at Radleigh University, all she's acing are partying and hooking up with the wrong guys. But all that changes when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, making her guardian to her two younger brothers. To keep them out of foster care, she'll have to fix up her image, her life, and her GPA—fast. Too bad the only person on campus she can go to for help is her humorless, pedantic Byzantine History TA, Connor Lawson, who isn't exactly Lizzie's biggest fan.

But Connor surprises her. Not only is he a great tutor, but he’s also a pretty great babysitter. And chauffeur. And listener. And he understands exactly what it’s like to be on your own before you're ready. Before long, Lizzie realizes having a responsible-adult type around has its perks... and that she'd like to do some rather irresponsible (but considerably adult) things with him as well. Good thing he's not the kind of guy who'd ever reciprocate.

Until he does.

Until they turn into far more than teacher and student.

Until the relationship that helped put their lives back together threatens everything they both have left.

My Thoughts:

This story starts off very strong, hitting you right in the feels and giving you insight into Lizzie's personality immediately. As the story progresses, her struggles to take care of her brothers after their parents died become known, and their daily life isn't easy peasy by a long shot. The friendship into more that Lizzie develops with her TA, Connor, is swoonworthy for sure. When I reached the end of the story, I found myself torn between how I felt about it. On the one hand, it felt authentic, and on the other hand, it felt unrealistic. I think the whole forbidden teacher student romance can go two ways. The romance is great, but sometimes it feels like the happily ever after doesn't always come with a price and that throws me off. I thought that the writing itself was fantastic and Dahlia Adler delivers her stories quite well. Last Will and Testament a pretty good start to the Radleigh University series.

My Rating: