They Say He Flies At Night: A Silver Bell Legends Novel by Amy Matayo

 

Everyone in Silver Bell, Arkansas has heard of Walter Lorry. Rumors have been circulating about the strange old man around town for years. He’s weird. Stooped and odd looking. Always keeps to himself and never speaks to anyone. At one time, he had a wife and kid, but no one has seen them in forever. Then there’s the matter of him sleeping on his front porch every night when there’s a perfectly good bed inside his house. Who in their right mind would do that?

But even the people of Silver Bell have to admit that Walter Lorry has beautiful penmanship—calligraphy so swirly and intricate you’ve never seen anything like it. They say dignitaries requested his work at some point in history. They say his work even hangs in museums around the world. They say he has money buried somewhere, maybe even next to his murdered family. They say a lot of things about Mr. Walter Lorry, it’s just that no one knows which things are true.

And which things are lies.

Leave it to Piper Moore—a newcomer who’s engaged to the son of town’s most prominent business owner—to find out. She’s heard the rumors, she’s seen his handwriting, and she wants Mr. Lorry to design one-of-a-kind wedding invitations just for her. After all, she’s used to getting her way, and she reasons that if his work was once good enough for Hollywood, then it’s good enough for her. Which is exactly what drives her to knock on his door, march inside the old man’s antique store, and convince him to do it.

She doesn’t expect his answer.
She isn’t prepared for his story to change everything she believes about love.
And she certainly wasn’t ready to learn all the reasons you should never, ever believe in small-town legends.

 * Amazon * Goodreads *

Oh, friends.  This is a good one.  I had a hard time putting this book down when life called.  I just wanted to be left alone with my book all day without interruptions.  

The story is, at first, centered around Piper.  Then Piper and Walter as she begins working in his store and reading his journals which take her back in time.  It's where, as a reader, the whole story begins to unfold.  Walter's story tugged at my heartstrings in such an insistent and emotional way.  I adored him.  His loyalty, his devotion, his love.  Ugh, just wait until you read it.  It's all so tragic yet sweet.  But don't worry.  It all ends well so there is a happy ending to look forward to.

Author Amy Matayo has a way of creating stories of the underdog.  Those who reside on the outside of social norms and acceptance.  In Walter's case, because his community put him there.  It makes me reevaluate my thinking and where I stand.  I never want to be the person that participates in something like this.

This isn't a romantic love story but it's a story about love.  Women's Fiction.  It was so good.  So, so good.  Don't miss it.

This book is on KU if you have that.

Content:  a few instances of mild swearing.  Death, adoption.  Kissing. 

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

They Call Her Dirty Sally by Amy Matayo

 

For years, the town of Silver Bell, Arkansas has quietly mourned the hospital fire that claimed the lives of nine of its residents—the town doctor, a young expectant mother, and seven infants. So, when journalist Finn Hardwick is assigned the story as part of a national thirtieth anniversary memorial service, he arrives at the town ready to interview its residents, thinking they’ll be ready to share and eager to make headlines.

He isn’t prepared for the resistance. Or for what appears to be a collective unwillingness to answer his questions.

Faced with one roadblock after another, Finn enlists the help of Billi Ellis, the young motel receptionist that everyone in the town seems to like. Maybe she can get them to open up to him. Maybe she can help him make sense of everything he keeps uncovering. Especially the unexpected tie this tragedy appears to have to his own life.

A tie that leads him directly to the old woman who seems to hold the key to everything. The woman everyone avoids…the woman they call “dirty”…the woman who hasn’t spoken a word to anyone since the day the hospital burned.

 * Amazon * Goodreads *

I rarely read blurbs, and that is especially true for authors that I am familiar with and whose books I know I love.  I knew from the title that this book might be a bit different but this author has a history of surprising me with stories in the best ways so of course I was in. 

My heart.  What I wasn't prepared for was the depth of thought and emotion that came with reading this book.  The overwhelming heartbreak and sadness and honestly, the embarrassment on behalf of humankind that would allow these kinds of things to happen.   

My head.  Full of all kinds of thoughts.  Looking back, looking forward, looking at the present.  What am I guilty of?  How can I do better?  Any of us that have an influence on children in any capacity need to be teaching by words and actions, love and kindness.  Compassion and a desire to help those who look like they might need it.  We need more Paul's in the world.  Thank goodness Sally had a Paul.  Paul took a stand.  He did everything in his power to help, to make Sally's world better.  I want to be Paul.

Two of my favorite things happened in this book.  Thinking and feeling.  That's how I know a book is a good one.  This story is going to stay with me for a long, long time.

Content:  alcoholism, child neglect, bullying, intimate relations behind closed doors with no details but you know they happen.  Mild swearing.

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

The Party Planning Committee (Reality Show Book 3) by Amy Matayo

 

When Charlotte Pringle Frost won The Party Planning Committee three years ago, she gained name-recognition, money, and enough wealthy clients to keep her Beverly Hills party-planning business running for months. But when her father used all her winnings to pay off his gambling debts, he left her with nothing but the clothes on her back and a damaged reputation. Now she’s living in Arkansas, was just fired from her party store cashier job, and can’t figure out how it all went wrong.

Lance Dutton hasn’t been at his mental wellness retreat in Switzerland five minutes when his mom calls to tell him his little sister is engaged. Alexandria is twenty-two, and her overly tattooed fiancé fronts an underground boy band; so much for mental wellness. It isn’t enough that Lance has spent ten years of his life starring on Dealing with the Duttons—his family’s reality show; now he’s expected to come home and oversee the wedding. With multiple product lines and new endorsement deals in the works, his family can’t afford any bad press.

When Alexandria impulsively hires some random contestant she remembers from an old reality game show to plan the wedding, all Lance sees is a disaster in the making. It’s bad enough that the wedding is in four weeks and his sister wants the whole process aired live, but this Charlotte chick is cuter than he expected, and she’s messing with his head. Suddenly he’s thinking about the future, and nothing could possibly be worse than that.

Nothing, that is, until Alexandria tells them her ridiculous wedding theme.

As the only sane people around, it’s up to Lance and Charlotte to make this disastrous wedding a success, a nearly impossible feat that soon has them both wondering…

Even if the wedding doesn’t work out, could they?

 * Amazon * Goodreads *

Are you ready for the most over the top wedding ever thought up?  You won't believe the craziness of this because who in their right mind would ever even dream up this kind of stuff?  And somewhere in the middle of the crazy is one girl, desperately trying to make her dreams come true and one boy watching her like she is HIS dream come true.

Charlotte is a character that is easy to love and easy to root for.  She is talented and she works so hard.  I loved her pluck and her determination.  I also loved that her best friend was in her eighties.  Charlotte is a kind heart and there at the end, with the wedding preparations, I knew I loved her.  And guess what?  So did Lance!!

Lance is a fun character.  He brings the lightness to the story as he watches Charlotte with growing attraction and interest and goes crazy with his sister and her waaaaaaaay over the top ideas.  He made me smile.

Yes, this a reality show theme, but honestly, the reality show part of it seemed pretty background in comparison to other reality show books I've read.  It suited this story well.  There were a few things regarding Charlotte's family and her anxiety about them finding out about her that remained unresolved and left me wondering.  I wish that would have been addressed in the epilogue or something because it seemed to be a huge focal point for Charlotte in the beginning of the book for no reason.

Overall, I really like this book.  The author is one of my favorites and I love reading her books.  This one was entertaining and endearing.  I read through it quickly and was anxious to get back to it every time I had to put it down.  

Content:  kissing, mild language

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Only Time Will Tell: A Charles & Company Romance, book 2 by Amy Matayo

 

For newly published author Eliza Sterling, having her first book launch party at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is a dream come true. Since her book is a modern-day retelling of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens and the Met is hosting a display of rarely seen Dickens’ artifacts at the same time, she chalks it up to a case of good timing.

For publicly disgraced, former best-selling author Lew McDonnell, seeing a debut author having her first book launch party at the Met brings up all sorts of resentments. Especially when the book this lady is promoting just happens to be one of his old manuscripts that she’s clearly plagiarized and claimed for herself.

When heated words are exchanged in front of a display case containing an original copy of Great Expectations, both Lew and Eliza are prepared for a fight. But they aren’t prepared for the room to shake, for the display case to shatter, or for the old book to send them both careening toward a new existence entirely.

When Lew wakes up on the floor of the Charles Dickens museum in London to see Eliza working there as a tour guide, he knows something has gone horribly wrong. It’s the same day and time, but suddenly he’s the best-selling author headlining his own book launch again, and Eliza is serving him drinks and working all hours to make ends meet. And the weirdest thing of all?

Lew is the only one who remembers their former lives.

 * Amazon * Goodreads *

I had fully intended to post this review on Friday but, well, life.  Something unexpected came up and I just couldn't.  Last week I read two time travel books which was odd for me but luckily they were nothing alike so it was easy to read them without comparison.  (phew!  I was worried about that!)

This book is the second in the series but I think it can stand alone.  You will probably enjoy it more if you read the first book though.  The first book in the series is definitely a time travel book but I would say this one is more of a time shift.  The characters don't travel through time but shift into an alternate reality where things are different for them.

Both Lew and Eliza are great characters.  It was so interesting to see how Eliza was so different in each timeline and how circumstances changed her perspective and her confidence so much.  The author did such a great job with the characters, making them seem vulnerable and relatable.  Lew's growth was so satisfying- at the beginning I pitied him and by the end I admired him.  I felt like I really knew Lew and Eliza both.  Knew them and loved them.  

I think I liked this book better than the first one!  It's a fun series and I can't wait to see what's coming next.

Content:  kissing, talk of substance (alcohol) abuse

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Before Time Runs Out (Charles & Company Romance, #1) by Amy Matayo

 

Graduate student Bree Sanders is failing the one class she needs to get her degree. So when her professor gives her an ultimatum—ace her dissertation or risk having to repeat her final semester—she knows she has to pull out all the stops. After scrambling for an idea, she decides to create her own Ghost Club, a club that blames ghosts for unsolved crimes, the same type of club originally founded two centuries ago by Charles Dickens.

What she doesn’t expect is to find an original copy of one of Dickens’ early works, or to be transplanted into Dickens’s actual ghost club meeting, circa 1870, the instant she picks it up.

When Bree shows up in nineteenth-century England wearing cut-offs and an old t-shirt, her only option is to hide. The Cambridge of 1870 won’t look kindly on a woman dressed like her. So, when Theodore Keyes finds her tucked behind a bookcase at the Trinity College library and immediately demands to know where she came from, she knows he doesn’t belong here either. Turns out she’s right; the same book caused him to time-travel from 1947 almost three months ago and he’s been stuck in England since.

Together, the two vow to work side-by-side in their search for the lost book that will take them home. But as their feelings for one another deepen, Theo and Bree are caught between a desire to return to the lives they each left behind, and the knowledge that if they find the book, they won’t be able to leave together.

In the end, they each must decide which sacrifice is worth making—the one that will cost them their hearts, or the one that could cost them their very existence.

 * Amazon * Goodreads *

Happy release day to this new book by author Amy Matayo!  I don't know how this feels as an author, but as a reader, it can be a bit scary when an author you love steps into a new genre.  Into the unknown. . . (is anyone singing with me?!)  Because what if you don't like it?  That's how I was feeling about this book.  Time travel romances can be hit or miss for me.  It's not a genre that is easy to do well.

I shouldn't have worried.  Honestly, I freaked myself out for nothing.  haha.  It took me a little bit to be convinced and to really invest in the characters and the story but once I was in, I was in.  The plot of this book is interesting and it wasn't like anything I've been reading lately so that felt really good.  It had a couple surprises for me that I didn't quite predict so that was also fun.

This author always does a good job of giving her characters substance and making them feel like every one of us.  A little bit broken in some places but brave in moving forward and facing life.  That was both Theo and Bree.  I really liked them both.

This is the first book in a new series and I'm excited about it!  Time travel romance, here we come!  This book is available in KU if you have that.  Happy reading!

Content:  mild peril, mild violence, kissing

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

The Reunion (Love In Chaos #4) by Amy Matayo

It’s been quite the year for the Hayes/Gamble family, but now things are looking up. When you’ve survived a tornado, a concert shooting, and being stranded on a deserted island, what else can possibly go wrong? After all, isn’t that the rule—three strikes, and you’re out?

That should totally be the rule.

Dillon Hayes has dreamed of her wedding day since childhood. Now, after months of planning, the chapel is booked, the invitations are sent, and the dress is ready and waiting. In only a few days’ time, Dillon will become Mrs. Liam Gamble in front of God, Tennessee, and everyone she loves.

But when a rare blizzard dumps piles of snow on Nashville and the entire southern region three days before the wedding, all that planning goes up in, well…snow. Businesses close. Flights are grounded. Roads are nearly impassible. Even the chapel now has a gaping hole in the middle of the roof and a giant mound of white powder blocking the aisle.

Dillon can feel her dreams dying one by one…and there’s nothing she can do to stop it. A year filled with one mishap after another can wear a person down. But what Dillon soon discovers is this: the death of one dream isn’t necessarily the end.

Sometimes it can lead to an even better beginning.

 * Amazon * Goodreads * 

This is equally happy and sad news.  The last Love in Chaos book.  But hey, hey, the gang's all here and for the happiest of events.  Now if everyone can actually make it there and if the wedding can actually happen, things would be perfect.  Ha!  When does anything ever go perfectly?!?!  

I love that we got a sort of epilogue for all the characters from previous books.  It was so good to be with them again when they are all together and happy in love.  This book felt so good despite the harrowing snow storm attempting to ruin all plans.  I love how this group of friends/family supported and loved each other.  They are all in type of people and that's the type of people you want in your life, right?  I really loved this bonus book to end this series on a happy, romantic note.  Thank you, thank you author Amy Matayo for this!

Content:  mild peril, kissing

This whole series is on Kindle Unlimited if you have that.  

The Last Shot (Love in Chaos #3) by Amy Matayo

It’s the same routine every night, and country music superstar Teddy Hayes wouldn’t have it any other way.

7:00 pm: Arena doors open and fans fill the stands.
7:45 pm: Lights go out and spotlights come on.
7:46 pm: Energy from concert-goers reaches an ear-spitting crescendo.
7:47 pm: Teddy takes the stage and begins to sing.

But tonight, something is off.

It starts when a stage light malfunctions and sends sparks into the air.
It continues when his drummer stops playing and stares slack-jawed in Teddy’s direction.
It dawns on him when a fan doubles-over and a red stain spreads across her shirt.
Something isn’t just off tonight.

Someone in the crowd is shooting a gun.

And it’s up to a female bodyguard he’s never met before to save his life.

 * Amazon * Goodreads * 

Wow.  This book jumped right into the thick of things.  There was no easing into this climactic situation and honestly, it just doesn't let you go.  This book was very intense for me and very frightening.  Maybe because it is so real.  The previous books in this series are very real too, but they were more about the elements against people.  That is scary but not personal.  People shooting other people is personal and it's the stuff of nightmares.  There were a few times I had to close the book and walk away for a minute- just to calm my emotions. 

Lest you think all is lost- love begins in the darkest of places.  Literally.  I don't even think it was romantic love at first- just a common love for another human being struggling and needing comfort and support that turned to awareness.  I loved the connection forged between Teddy and Jane.  In the hardest, scariest moments of their lives, they are joined together, trying to make sense of what is happening and trying to stay alive.  Amy Matayo is so good at working through raw human emotions and turning it into something beautiful.  It really helped me feel like I knew intimately both Teddy and Jane.  

I think I read through this book in fast forward.  I actually thought when I finished that it was a shorter book- barely novel length.  Haha.  No.  It's a good size novel and I just blew through it so fast that it felt that way.  I couldn't help it, I guess.  That's what intense does to me. 

This book is the third in the series.  It can stand alone but characters from previous books make an appearance or two so you might be happier if you read the others first.  These books are all on Kindle Unlimited.

The Waves
The Aftermath

 Content:  violence, peril, mild swearing, kissing, mention of casual intimate relations

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own. 

It’s the same routine every night, and country music superstar Teddy Hayes wouldn’t have it any other way.

7:00 pm: Arena doors open and fans fill the stands.
7:45 pm: Lights go out and spotlights come on.
7:46 pm: Energy from concert-goers reaches an ear-spitting crescendo.
7:47 pm: Teddy takes the stage and begins to sing.

But tonight, something is off.

It starts when a stage light malfunctions and sends sparks into the air.
It continues when his drummer stops playing and stares slack-jawed in Teddy’s direction.
It dawns on him when a fan doubles-over and a red stain spreads across her shirt.
Something isn’t just off tonight.

Someone in the crowd is shooting a gun.

And it’s up to a female bodyguard he’s never met before to save his life.

It’s the same routine every night, and country music superstar Teddy Hayes wouldn’t have it any other way.

7:00 pm: Arena doors open and fans fill the stands.
7:45 pm: Lights go out and spotlights come on.
7:46 pm: Energy from concert-goers reaches an ear-spitting crescendo.
7:47 pm: Teddy takes the stage and begins to sing.

But tonight, something is off.

It starts when a stage light malfunctions and sends sparks into the air.
It continues when his drummer stops playing and stares slack-jawed in Teddy’s direction.
It dawns on him when a fan doubles-over and a red stain spreads across her shirt.
Something isn’t just off tonight.

Someone in the crowd is shooting a gun.

And it’s up to a female bodyguard he’s never met before to save his life.

It’s the same routine every night, and country music superstar Teddy Hayes wouldn’t have it any other way.

7:00 pm: Arena doors open and fans fill the stands.
7:45 pm: Lights go out and spotlights come on.
7:46 pm: Energy from concert-goers reaches an ear-spitting crescendo.
7:47 pm: Teddy takes the stage and begins to sing.

But tonight, something is off.

It starts when a stage light malfunctions and sends sparks into the air.
It continues when his drummer stops playing and stares slack-jawed in Teddy’s direction.
It dawns on him when a fan doubles-over and a red stain spreads across her shirt.
Something isn’t just off tonight.

Someone in the crowd is shooting a gun.

And it’s up to a female bodyguard he’s never met before to save his life.It’s the same routine every night, and country music superstar Teddy Hayes wouldn’t have it any other way.

7:00 pm: Arena doors open and fans fill the stands.
7:45 pm: Lights go out and spotlights come on.
7:46 pm: Energy from concert-goers reaches an ear-spitting crescendo.
7:47 pm: Teddy takes the stage and begins to sing.

But tonight, something is off.

It starts when a stage light malfunctions and sends sparks into the air.
It continues when his drummer stops playing and stares slack-jawed in Teddy’s direction.
It dawns on him when a fan doubles-over and a red stain spreads across her shirt.
Something isn’t just off tonight.

Someone in the crowd is shooting a gun.

And it’s up to a female bodyguard he’s never met before to save his life.It’s the same routine every night, and country music superstar Teddy Hayes wouldn’t have it any other way.

7:00 pm: Arena doors open and fans fill the stands.
7:45 pm: Lights go out and spotlights come on.
7:46 pm: Energy from concert-goers reaches an ear-spitting crescendo.
7:47 pm: Teddy takes the stage and begins to sing.

But tonight, something is off.

It starts when a stage light malfunctions and sends sparks into the air.
It continues when his drummer stops playing and stares slack-jawed in Teddy’s direction.
It dawns on him when a fan doubles-over and a red stain spreads across her shirt.
Something isn’t just off tonight.

Someone in the crowd is shooting a gun.

And it’s up to a female bodyguard he’s never met before to save his life.

The Aftermath (Love in Chaos #2) by Amy Matayo

According to Riley Mae Floss, life is a ten-page menu of possibilities. As the owner of a cupcake shop in small-town Missouri, she thrives on candies and rainbows and spreading joy every chance she gets. Even her hair is the color of bubble gum. Life is just the way she likes it, so why would she want anything to change now?

But when a tornado rips into Riley Mae’s southern town and destroys nearly everything in its path, her happy little life changes in less than forty-two seconds. Buildings gone. Homes carried away. People missing or even dead. Her bakery a shell of what it once was; also her life. Riley Mae’s picture-perfect world is shattered, and everyone she cares about has been hurt in the process.
According to insurance adjuster Chad Gamble, life always works out exactly the way it’s supposed to…for other people. As for him, life is a bit of a crapfest—one where he never wins the prize, makes the starting team, or gets the girl. He’s straight-laced, suit-and-tie, all-business, and sees the world for the color it is: muted gray with a little black around the edges.

So when Chad Gamble walks into Riley Mae’s ruined bakery to “assess the damages”—his words, not hers—he has no intention of getting bogged down by sentimental nonsense. Sparks immediately start to fly, and not the good kind. Who does this pushy, pink-haired chick think she is, treating him like an outsider when all he came to do was help? He can’t figure out why the locals like her so much.

Or worse, why he can’t stop thinking about her.

 * Goodreads * Amazon * 

Wa-hoo!  I love reading books by Amy Matayo!  It is always so exciting when I sit down and get to open to that first page that will start me on a roller coaster of emotions with characters I will grow to love. 

This book was so good.  So full of grit and charm.  There is tragedy and adversity with struggle around every turn.  It's in those moments of struggle, when things seem to be at their worst, that the core of who we are really emerges.  Riley is, at her core, generous and compassionate.  She sees human need and gives of herself, whatever she can, to fill those empty places even when she is breaking apart too.  I absolutely loved her.  

"Rescuing people isn't always about pulling them from the depths.  Sometimes it's about being there, being present, letting someone know you care without words or platitudes or even heroic acts of courage.  Sometimes the most courageous thing you can do is just listen without walking away."

And Chad?  He really is a man who shows up.  Whatever the motivating factor, he shows up and acts like a man.  A good man.  Yes, please.

I loved the sparks.  I loved the cupcakes.  I loved the sense of triumph in tragedy.  I loved seeing characters from the previous book in this series.  I loved the love.  The growing, palpable love. 💙💙  I was so invested, from beginning to end.

Content:  a couple instances of mild swearing, peril, kissing

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

 

Cover Reveal!! The Aftermath (A Love in Chaos Novel) by Amy Matayo

Cover reveal! Check out Amy Matayo's new LOVE IN CHAOS novel, THE AFTERMATH, releasing Sept 12. Pre-order now: https://amzn.to/2GA36XG   #theaftermath #loveinchaos #amymatayo #comingsoon #Sept12 #romance #cantwaittoread #mustread #coverreveal #coverlove

According to Riley Mae Floss, life is a ten-page menu of possibilities. As the owner of a cupcake shop in small-town Missouri, she thrives on candies and rainbows and spreading joy every chance she gets. Even her hair is the color of bubble gum. Life is just the way she likes it, so why would she want anything to change now?

But when a tornado rips into Riley Mae’s southern town and destroys nearly everything in its path, her happy little life changes in less than forty-two seconds. Buildings gone. Homes carried away. People missing or even dead. Her bakery a shell of what it once was; also her life. Riley Mae’s picture-perfect world is shattered, and everyone she cares about has been hurt in the process.

According to insurance adjuster Chad Gamble, life always works out exactly the way it’s supposed to…for other people. As for him, life is a bit of a crapfest—one where he never wins the prize, makes the starting team, or gets the girl. He’s straight-laced, suit-and-tie, all-business, and sees the world for the color it is: muted gray with a little black around the edges.

So when Chad Gamble walks into Riley Mae’s ruined bakery to “assess the damages”—his words, not hers—he has no intention of getting bogged down by sentimental nonsense. Sparks immediately start to fly, and not the good kind. Who does this pushy, pink-haired chick think she is, treating him like an outsider when all he came to do was help? He can’t figure out why the locals like her so much.

Or worse, why he can’t stop thinking about her.

 * Pre- Order on Amazon *

The Waves (Love In Chaos #1) by Amy Matayo

Dillon Hayes is twenty-eight and single, an unfortunate status her overbearing family is determined to fix. So when she’s stuck on a cruise ship for a seven-day reunion with the lot of them, she's desperate for any escape she can find, even if it means partnering with a sketchy stranger for an off-the-beaten-path snorkeling excursion. After her mother's last matchmaking attempt, Dillon is more than willing to trade all her good sense for a few hours of solace.

Liam Gamble is stuck in the middle of family vacation hell. The worst part: it's not even his family. This will be the last time he ever accepts a free-vacation invitation from his best friend. At this point, he'd be willing to hand over his life savings to get off this crazy ship. So when he catches one of his friend's cousins sneaking off board, he decides to join her, hijacking her private excursion and nearly blowing her cover. If she gets to leave, so does he.

But what starts off as a secret escape turns into a very real nightmare when their shady tour guide leaves them stranded on an uninhabited island with nothing but the clothes on their backs and no idea how to keep themselves alive.

As hours turn into days, and the weather proves as threatening as their need for food and water, Dillon and Liam must join forces and rely on each other if they have any hope of seeing their families again. Funny thing: sometimes in life, the end of the rope is when you discover everything you value has been in front of you all along.

 * Goodreads * Amazon *

You know what?  I wish I had time to go back and read this book again right now.  As I sit here thinking about this book and what I want to say, all I really want to do is read it again.  I could probably just leave it at that for a review, don't you think?  Because nothing says "I love this book" better than wanting to read it again.

I am an Amy Matayo fan.  She writes books that fall right in my sweet spot.  Her characters have depth and personality.  In fact, this book has a whole load of memorable characters but I especially loved how Dillon and Liam learn about each other and rely on each other through a very frightening experience.  A deserted island sounds so perfect and romantic but when you are actually stuck there reality is just a tad different.  I hope I never know that personally!

This book played out like a perfect movie in my head.  I loved it.  And now I want to go to the beach.  Or on a cruise.  Or maybe I just want to read this book again!  😉  This book is available on Kindle Unlimited if you have that!

Content:  mild peril, kissing

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.

Lies We Tell Ourselves by Amy Matayo

 

Presley Waterman is a rescuer: of animals, of businesses, of people. Like the stray cat she's allergic to, but continues to care for. Like her small-town newspaper, a business that’s been dying a slow death for the better part of a decade. And like Micah. Her best friend and the man she has loved since they were kids, back when no one else cared.

As for him…

Micah Leven loves Presley. She’s the girl who’s always been there to help, the one who knows all the ugly things about him and makes him believe he can be a better man, the one who will never leave because she’s promised over and over.
But he also loves Mara.

Mara is his ideal. She’s the dream he conjured up as a boy and never wavered from. She’s beautiful, ambitious, driven, a fellow newscaster at his Atlanta station, and the perfect asset for the life he’s always wanted. Together, they could conquer the world and their respective careers. Even better, with Mara he could prove that he did—in fact—finally amount to something. Maybe then his father would be proud.

There are just a few things Presley and Micah have both forgotten. One, just because you rescue someone doesn’t mean they’ll love you for it. Two, some dreams disappear when reality wakes you up. Three, the only way to silence lies is to face the truth head-on.

This is the story of the man torn between two existences, the woman who finally took the choice away from him, and what happens when you stop listening to lies once and for all.

Even if the biggest liar is you.

 * Amazon * Goodreads * 

One thing I will say about this author, Amy Matayo, is that she sure doesn't shy away from the deeper, gritty emotions that come from difficult life circumstances.  This book is a testament to how much she really thought through those emotions and how her characters were acting and reacting to life.  The natural consequence of that is that I believe it.  

Presley and Micah were scarred, broken and vulnerable.  I was so invested in them both.  How could I not be?  Flashbacks to their younger years and alternating viewpoints played a large part in my understanding and connection to them.  

I loved the overwhelming theme of the lies we tell ourselves.  It's true.  We all tell ourselves lies.  Sometimes we really believe the lies, sometimes we know what we are doing but can't seem to help ourselves.  This is a tough world to live in.  Lies are all around us and they become truth if we let them.  I love when Presley finally decides to make a stand and force the lies away from her.  It's a struggle, it's raw, it's emotional but man, it also felt so empowering for her.  It takes courage to face the lies we tell ourselves.

This book isn't light, easy reading.  It's not really what I would call a "romance" either.  It's definitely about relationships and life and struggles.  It made me think and it made me feel.  Two very awesome things that I look for as a reader.  I like to be challenged in the way I look at people and things.   I really loved it.

Content:  scenes of physical, emotional and verbal abuse, kissing, alcoholism mentioned

- I received a complimentary copy of this book.  All opinions expressed are my own.
 

The Thirteenth Chance by Amy Matayo

Baseball star Will Vandergriff knows any number of women who would happily pretend to be his girlfriend. In a last-ditch effort to restore his good standing with his team’s higher-ups, he enlists the help of his neurotic, goody-goody neighbor. Schoolteacher Olivia Pratt might be a bit quirky and a bit of a loner, but she’s a lot more inviting than she knows. Will hopes that bringing her to his next game might revamp his reckless reputation and help get his career back on track. The only problem? The plan works a little too well. Not only do the higher-ups love Olivia, but Will plays his best game yet. Suddenly his losing streak is a thing of the past, and Olivia is his new good-luck charm. Will feels anything but lucky.

After years of keeping the world at bay, Olivia Pratt is pulling off the ultimate performance—not only reluctantly posing as Will’s girlfriend but also insisting that she’s oblivious to his major-league appeal. But she can only lie to herself for so long. Being by Will’s side feels good. Really good. Maybe it’s finally time to make a pitch for everything she really wants—and to find out just how exhilarating love can be.

 * Goodreads * Amazon *

I saw this book on NetGalley and I knew I had to read it.  Amy Matayo is an author I'm always on the lookout for and I was super excited to see this new book by her!  I think I'm probably the last of my Goodreads friends to write my review for this book but I can tell you that there is a lot of love going around for this book, which makes me so happy.

The characters in this book are fantastic.  They are larger than life and literally fill up the pages.  I felt like I knew them.  I could visualize them so easily and hear them in my head.  That's what I love!  I wouldn't say that I loved either character from the beginning but their personalities were distinct and very human.

Will is just a jerk in the beginning.  He is full of himself and over the top but as the book goes on, he softens and let's down his jerk wall a bit.  :)

Olivia is quirky and has some definite neurotic tendencies.  She is so endearing!  I fell in love with her right along with Will.

This book was just so fun.  I loved settling in and becoming wrapped up in this love story.  The characters really made this story come alive for me.  So well done!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

In Tune With Love (A Year of Weddings) by Amy Matayo

April is willing to do anything for her sister’s wedding—until she comes face to face with a guy from her past.

April Quinn is thrilled to be her sister’s maid of honor, until the wedding coordinator quits and the responsibilities get dumped on her. It’s April’s worst nightmare—especially since her sister has more objections and opinions than a lawyer presenting a high-profile court case. When the wedding singer walks out at the last-minute, her sister hires a replacement. When April finds out who the replacement is, she’s ready to call it quits as well.
Because there’s only one person in April’s past that she never wanted to see again, and her sister just handed him a front row seat to the wedding.

Jack Vaughn finally has the career he’s always wanted. After playing in bars and singing in weddings as a struggling musician for half a decade, he’s just released his second album and sales are skyrocketing. But while visiting his parent’s Nashville home the weekend before his first headline tour, he runs into an old friend. When she asks him for a last-minute favor, he can’t bring himself to say no. Even though saying yes means he has to come face to face with April Quinn—the girl who hasn’t spoken to him in years.

And rightly so, since he stole something from her that he’ll never be able to repay.

 * Amazon * Goodreads *

Amy Matayo is one of my new favorite authors.  I'm always on the lookout for a new book from her so I can snatch it up and read it.  And yay for Goodreads where one of my book friends read and reviewed this book.  I ran over and grabbed it for myself so I could review it too.  My thanks to the publisher, Zondervan for allowing me to read and review this title for them via NetGalley.

This was such a fun novella.  My only complaint is that it ended way too soon.  I wanted more of Jack and April.  A lot more.

Poor Jack really did steal something from April that he cannot repay.  But, he's determined to try to make it up to her.  April is good at resisting.  She has years of resentment built up and that isn't easy to break through.  It was a fun battle to watch.  The interactions between April and Jack are great.  They made me smile.  The grocery store scene was classic.  It was nice to see the guy in the embarrassing position instead of the girl.  Ha!  

This book was sweet, clean, and romantic.  The attraction was there, the tension was there and the conflict was there.  You have to wait until the VERY end to get that first kiss but it's worth the wait.  :)

In Tune with Love is part of the Year of Weddings Novellas.