Sweet Filthy Boy ~ Christina Lauren

Sweet Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 Swoony Frenchman stars

This was my second foray into the minds of Christina Lauren, and thankfully it was much more enjoyable this time around.


 


  Book blurb


One-night stands are supposed to be with someone convenient, or wickedly persuasive, or regrettable. They aren’t supposed to be with someone like him.

But after a crazy Vegas weekend celebrating her college graduation—and terrified of the future path she knows is a cop-out—Mia Holland makes the wildest decision of her life: follow Ansel Guillaume—her sweet, filthy fling—to France for the summer and just…play.

When feelings begin to develop behind the provocative roles they take on, and their temporary masquerade adventures begin to feel real, Mia will have to decide if she belongs in the life she left because it was all wrong, or in the strange new one that seems worlds away.

This was pretty much me while reading the first third of this book.
 


I loved everything about it. i loved the humor, the snarky best friends, the over the top One-Night-Stand-In-Vegas-Ends-in-Marriage premise. It was perfection. I especially loved Ansel. He was the perfect blend of sweet and sexy, and who doesn't love an accent?! And Mia was also great. She was spunky and a bit damaged and I really loved how she decided to follow her heart.

Then we reached about the half way mark in the book. And suddenly, i felt a bit like this.
 


Strangely, the story began to lose some of it's steam when the action moved to Paris. I appreciated how well the authors handled the awkwardness between Ansel and Mia once the reality of the situation hit them. It was realistic and believable that after the whirlwind of their night in Vegas, that they would doubt their attraction/feelings for each other. BUT...that aspect of the story seemed to drag on a bit too long.

Having said all that, CL completely redeemed themselves with the nearly perfect ending. Talk about sweet and swoon-worthy. Ansel is a Hero to die for, and Mia proved to be a wonderful, strong heroine that i came to love and respect.

This would have definitely gotten a 4+ star rating if it didn't drag a bit in the middle. Otherwise, this was a fun, sweet, and steamy read. :)

 

Easy ~ Tammara Webber

Easy by Tammara Webber
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After finishing this book, I can describe it perfectly in two words.

Swoon Worthy.

If ever there was a book that could be labeled as Swoon Worthy, it is most definitely Easy by Tammara Webber.

Jacqueline is on her way home from a frat party one night when she is attacked by one of her ex-boyfriend's friends. She ends up being rescued by mysterious, fellow college student Lucas. Jacqueline doesn't remember seeing Lucas around campus before, but Lucas has definitely noticed her. The two embark on a friendship and a romance that is truly wonderful to experience as a reader. Webber writes the story in such a way that you feel like you are experiencing everything right along with the characters.

Jacqueline is one of the most endearing and memorable female leads I have come across in quite some time. Even though she struggles to deal with what happened to her at the party, she is by no means a victim. She is a fighter. And thank heavens she didn't turn out to be one of those female characters who goes through a traumatic experience and ends up pushing everyone around her away. She wants to be with Lucas. She wants to be close to him, and with the exception of some mild trepidation in the beginning, she embraces that fact. She realizes that Lucas enables her to be even stronger, and they end up helping each other in so many different ways through the course of this book.

And that leads me to Lucas. I have basically had the same list of my Top 5 Favorite Male characters for a looooong time. It never changes. Well, someone is getting bumped, because Lucas has shot to the top of that list. He is pretty much my idea of the perfect guy. He's sweet, Caring, Empathetic, intelligent, artistic. He loves with every fiber of his being and he doesn't care what anyone else thinks of him. Yes, he has his demons. But, unlike many other characters i could name (*COUGHjacewaylandCOUGH*) he doesn't deal with them by being a complete asshole to the people in his life (for the most part anyway). The way that he cares for Jacqueline ...how he is constantly pushing her to be able to defend herself...to take care of HERSELF, not just trying to swoop in and be the hero...oh my GAWD! That is swoon-worthy right there! And did I mention that the boy is all kinds of insanely hot? Tall and lanky, dark hair...tattoos. A lip ring....he even makes a lip ring sexy.

Okay, Full Disclosure time: The whole Lucas/Landon aspect...was a bit silly. I could see how that was going to play out from the beginning. However, i LOVED the text/email banter, so it kind of made the distracting plot twist worth it in the end.

Also, this book is listed as YA, but it would definitely have to be considered MATURE YA. Not only because it deals with the subject of rape & attempted rape, but also because the love scenes between Jacqueline/Lucas are...beyond steamy. Like off the steam meter. So just keep that in mind.

One of the main things that kept running through my head while reading this book was why i had never read anything by Tammara Webber before. This may have been my first book by her, but it definitely won't be my last.