BOOK REVIEW: Avoiding Commitment by K.A. Linde (Avoiding #1)

Date Published: August 1,2012
Synopsis:

Jack and Lexi never had a typical relationship. After 2 years without speaking, she receives a phone call that changes everything. He unexpectedly asks her to convince the new girl, Bekah, that he's ready to commit. Jack is calling now after everything they had been through because there is another woman. She can't believe it. Follow Lexi in this heart wrenching drama as she relives her past relationship, or lack thereof, with Jack, and not just in her own mind, but to his fiance-to-be. Throw in Bekah's hot brother who always seems to be in the right place at the right time, a past with more secrets to unravel than you can even imagine, and you get a recipe for disaster. Find out what happens to Lexi as she travels to Atlanta to get the closure she so desperately desires from Jack, and how the bumps of life seem to keep getting in the way.

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Review:

12 am : I was in the middle part of book when I thought that's it for the night. But I can't take these questions off my mind: How will it end? Will she end up being with Jack or will she get her closure? I even thought of taking a peek of the last part just to give me some comfort so that I could sleep soundly without those thoughts in my mind. But no, I didn't do that so I had to stay up until 4 in the morning just to finish it all. So.. (sigh)

This is just PURE CRAZY, STRESSFUL read. It's like I'm in a rollercoaster ride and for most of the time I just want to scream and beg it to stop but then I couldn't stop. I want to ride it through the end and see if it's worth it. Is it worth it? YES, for most parts, I think, so YES. 

Who's crazier? The girlfriend who wants to meet her boyfriend's exes or the girl who agrees to meet the "future-fiance" of the guy she never gotten over with? Or the guy who uses a girl and never commits? They are ALL CRAZY!

Lexi, the protagonist, has been in love with Jack since the time she laid her eyes on him. They never really were in "a relationship" but there's always this connection between them and they can't get away from it. They have known each other for six years and everytime they meet, a cycle happens. They make wrong decisions that always end up in a situation where it ends up hurting people.

I hate Lexi for being a martyr! She's intelligent but she never uses her brains to make mature decisions especially where Jack is concerned. She just let her feelings for Jack cloudy her reasoning. She's experienced psychological and emotional torture which I can't help but feel for her. 

Jack, the oh so gorgeous and sexy Jack, definitely has some PROBLEM---SERIOUS psychological problem! Honestly, for the first parts of the book, I really liked him! He's charming, kind and a gentleman. But then hell break loose! I'm not kidding! He has great convincing skills, he should be a lawyer! He has commitment issues, I know, but why has he done such things? I  JUST DON'T GET HIM! *spoiler* He's an arse but deep inside I was still hoping he would change- make a wise decision to commit and be with Lexi instead.*end**Wishful Thinking*

And her girlfriend Bekah is such a bitch! She's a two-faced bitch and I just want to slap her several times! They deserve each other and they should just leave Lexi alone.  

The light of the book were Chyna and Ramsey. I like Chyna for being true to herself and to her friend Lexi. She's thoughtful and everytime Lexi needs her, she's there without second thoughts. I also like Ramsey's character. He's a country club kind of guy- rich, mannered, observant, and oh, so good looking.(yumyum!LOL) He differs himself by being a rebel to his family especially his father. He likes to tease and anger Lexi but in a way, he wants to have Lexi's attention and he wants her to like him too. *spoiler*But there's something odd about him. I think he has some dark secrets he'd never allow anyone to know, even Lexi.*end*

I hate and at the same time loved the book. I hate about the cheating and lying part. I had a hard time accepting that these are happening in the real world. On the other hand, I love the narrative style of K.A. Linde. It was easy-flowing for the first few pages of the book. It has a great humor for most parts and I wasn't bored. The chapters were alternating from present then past which keeps me interested on what new details will be revealed. There were also songs for each chapter so you'll have an idea of what the chapter is about. And as expected, there were alot of hot and steamy scenes which can be found mostly in the second half of the book.  I was a bit disappointed in the last part but I realized it's for the best. Despite the book being complicated, there's some moral you can learn so I gave it a high rating.

This is more of an Adult Contemporary read so for those who's into these kind of books, better give this a try.

Rating:

HOT,HOT,HOT!

Memorable Quotes:

"Closing up. Finally spent.

You are gone.

And now you're moving along.

Heavy now. Tears remain.

Hard pressed to rest.

When all I feel like is a mess.

Now, don't you worry your head.

You're not my one and only friend.

And I don't need you anymore.

To leave me bruised and broken on the floor.

You left me bruised. You left me broken.

You left me bruised. You left me broken."

"And Lexi had to deal with that fact. She had to deal with knowing that he hadn't chosen her. He didn't want her."

"She could remember a time when she thought things could be right with her and Jack. Now it seemed like that was such a long time ago. How could she have ever told herself things were going to be alright? She now knew with every once of her being that there was absolutely nothing left of the man she had once loved."

"Why couldn't be closure be easier than this?"

*spoiler*LOVED THIS PART!!

"I appreciate the fact that you have one redeeming quality Jack but that is all it is. Just a measly hint of redemption with six years of disappointment.

No matter what you do, it will never make up for what has happened between us. I will never trust you. I will never again be comfortable around you. I will never look at you or think of you without  considering the destruction you have train wrecked through my life.

I hope you the very best in your future, because without you in my life I think I might finally have a future. And as angry as I am with what you have put me through, I am so very glad that we are now at this moment. This moment means I can move on to bigger and better things without you constantly weighing on my shoulders.

I will never again turn a corner in New York terrified that I will run into you and even more terrified that I won't. I can go into any coffee shop I want. I can hope for love again. A love that will be more than anything you ever attempted to give to me. Because the love I am looking for will be reciprocated one hundred and ten percent. There will never be another someone to distract our affections, because you will not be in the picture.

So as sad as this day is for me, as I am losing a part of myself with the loss of you, it is really just the beginning for me. it is like cutting off the spoiled part to get to the juicy center. So I would appreciate it this time, if you did not try and contact me, because I'm sure you know I deserve much better. I want everything this time around and I deserve it."

*end*

Question: When will you say "It's time to let go?"

BOOK REVIEW: Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols

Publication Date: July 10, 2012
Book Description (Goodreads): 
A sexy and poignant romantic tale of a young daredevil pilot caught between two brothers. When I was fourteen, I made a decision. If I was doomed to live in a trailer park next to an airport, I could complain about the smell of the jet fuel like my mom, I could drink myself to death over the noise like everybody else, or I could learn to fly.

Heaven Beach, South Carolina, is anything but, if you live at the low-rent end of town. All her life, Leah Jones has been the grown-up in her family, while her mother moves from boyfriend to boyfriend, letting any available money slip out of her hands. At school, they may diss Leah as trash, but she’s the one who negotiates with the landlord when the rent’s not paid. At fourteen, she’s the one who gets a job at the nearby airstrip.

But there’s one way Leah can escape reality. Saving every penny she can, she begs quiet Mr. Hall, who runs an aerial banner-advertising business at the airstrip and also offers flight lessons, to take her up just once. Leaving the trailer park far beneath her and swooping out over the sea is a rush greater than anything she’s ever experienced, and when Mr. Hall offers to give her cut-rate flight lessons, she feels ready to touch the sky.

By the time she’s a high school senior, Leah has become a good enough pilot that Mr. Hall offers her a job flying a banner plane. It seems like a dream come true . . . but turns out to be just as fleeting as any dream. Mr. Hall dies suddenly, leaving everything he owned in the hands of his teenage sons: golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson. And they're determined to keep the banner planes flying. Though Leah has crushed on Grayson for years, she’s leery of getting involved in what now seems like a doomed business—until Grayson betrays her by digging up her most damning secret. Holding it over her head, he forces her to fly for secret reasons of his own, reasons involving Alec. Now Leah finds herself drawn into a battle between brothers—and the consequences could be deadly.
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Rating:

OKAY..

BOOK REVIEW: 

For the first few pages of the book, it's mostly narration of Leah about her life. I'll admit I got a bit bored but I knew I should be patient so I just read through it. 

Leah wasn't the typical protagonist. She's the bad girl type who drinks and smokes. She lives in a trailer park with her mother who was never there. They always live near the airport so she became fascinated with airplanes and decided she wanted to become a pilot. She's different when she's flying because that's the only time she feels in control of her life. She had flying lessons with Mr. Hall who has 3 sons, 2 of them are twins, Alec and Grayson. 

Alec was the "nice" guy while Grayson was known as the "blacksheep" of the family. Her relationship with both of the guys were casual until Mr. Hall died. Grayson totally changed because of that. He took the responsibility of running Hall Aviation and he needed Leah not just for the business but for another purpose. So he blackmailed Leah for her to do the job.  There were a lot of arguments and of course, making out.

I had a hard time rating this one because I had mixed emotions about it.  I've been weighing whether to give it a 2 or 3 stars. So I just gave it a 2.5 stars. I've seen high marks and praises about the book so I expected much from it. I'm disappointed that I didn't love it that much.

I liked some parts but that wasn't enough for me to love it. The concept was okay. I expected there'll be a climax and that's good for me. The main characters, Leah and Grayson's relationship development was predictable but acceptable for me.

On the other hand, there were some things that were lacking. First, the closure between Leah and her mom. Yeah, she's a bad mom but her character should've changed a bit. It's like on one part she's there, then she's gone again. Her presence didn't make the story better. I just wish she wasn't a part of the story at all. Second, Leah's relationship with her bestfriend Molly. I just can't understand Molly's character. She's very kind and understanding to Leah. I thought she's the open-minded one but the way she acts and the things she says at times were contradicting to her personality. Then when they fought and made out, there wasn't much explanation. They just hugged and said a few things then they're friends again, that's it. Lastly, I wasn't satisfied with the flow of the story. I just felt that more things should've happened in some scenes but then it jumped to another. It's hard to explain it more clearly so I'm sorry if you can't understand what I'm saying. Haha.

This is my first time to read Jennifer Echols' work. I don't know if I'd give her other books a chance but let's see. If you're really a fan, you should try reading it. 

BOOK REVIEW: On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves

Publication Date: October 11, 2011

Book Description (Goodreads):

When thirty-year-old English teacher Anna Emerson is offered a job tutoring T.J. Callahan at his family's summer rental in the Maldives, she accepts without hesitation; a working vacation on a tropical island trumps the library any day. T.J. Callahan has no desire to leave town, not that anyone asked him. He's almost seventeen and if having cancer wasn't bad enough, now he has to spend his first summer in remission with his family - and a stack of overdue assignments - instead of his friends.

Anna and T.J. are en route to join T.J.'s family in the Maldives when the pilot of their seaplane suffers a fatal heart attack and crash-lands in the Indian Ocean. Adrift in shark-infested waters, their life jackets keep them afloat until they make it to the shore of an uninhabited island.

Now Anna and T.J. just want to survive and they must work together to obtain water, food, fire, and shelter. Their basic needs might be met but as the days turn to weeks, and then months, the castaways encounter plenty of other obstacles, including violent tropical storms, the many dangers lurking in the sea, and the possibility that T.J.'s cancer could return. As T.J. celebrates yet another birthday on the island, Anna begins to wonder if the biggest challenge of all might be living with a boy who is gradually becoming a man.

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Rating: 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Book Review:

I read some reviews about the book that it's good but I wasn't that convinced. I thought the plot was just "okay" just about a boy and a 30-year old woman stuck in a island. I hate to admit that I was definitely wrong.

I have to commend the writer because it was well written. I love the spontaneity of how it was narrated and the transition of point of views weren't overlapping . I'm glad that my imagination was not overworked so it made me enjoy the book. 

I love the characters' personality. Anna is a great woman and knows what she wants. She wants to have a husband and children, a family of her own. She's in the stage of her life where important decisions should be made that's why she accepted the job of tutoring T.J. so that she'll have time to think. On the other hand, T.J. is a young boy but acts like a man. He's knowledgeable and funny which makes it all easy to be with him.

At first, Anna and T.J. had a hard time to adjust in their situation. They have no choice but to accept what happened and try to live their lives one day at a time. They had encountered a lot of problems which made them depend on each other for their survival. 

I think I will stop here so I won't reveal much. It's better if you're not anticipating things when you read it. So, that's it! Enjoy!