REVIEW // “Play With Me” and “Ryan Hunter” by Anna Katmore

 Today I’m reviewing two books together because they are the same story, in separate books, told by each of the main characters.

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Play With Me by Anna Katmore

(Grover Beach Team #1)

5 Stars

If you are in the mood for a super sweet innocent romance, this is the book for you.

 

Liza Matthews has been in love with her best friend Tony Mitchell since forever. The summer between Sophomore and Junior year he comes home from soccer camp and to Liza’s utter dismay, begins spending time with a girl she dubs Barbie.

 

Enter Ryan Hunter. He’s the captain of that soccer team responsible for stealing away her quality time with Tony. Hunter is a playboy, a new girl every week but when he begins paying special attention to her she begins to wonder if she could actually love someone else.

 

Play With Me is a super fast read. I could not devour this book quick enough. Liza is so likable and Hunter is dreamy. My favorite scene involves a shot of tequila and some karaoke.

 

My only minor “issues” with this book are my moral qualms. There is quite a bit of underage drinking and specifically drinking after driving. The parents seem to let their kids do whatever the heck they want, for the most part. There were also a few typos/grammatical errors but considering I’m pretty sure the author is not a native English speaker I’m very impressed with the quality of this book.

 

None of my minor “issues” would prevent me from recommending this book to someone to read, though I wish there was some sort of disclaimer stating that the author doesn’t promote the underage drinking and so on. (Yes, this is the parent in me coming out!)

 

BONUS: The cover is adorable and fits the feel of the story perfectly.

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Ryan Hunter by Anna Katmore
(Grover Beach Team #2)

3 Stars

“Ryan Hunter” is the counterpart to “Play With Me” in that it’s the exact same story but from the guys POV. I love stories like this because I get to enjoy a story that I loved (if I didn’t love it I would’t bother reading the counterpart!)

This one I didn’t love as much though. I liked being able to see into Hunter’s head, but I couldn’t get over the fact that all he had on his mind at all times was sex. In “Play With Me” Hunter was mysterious and sexy. In “Ryan Hunter” he’s kind of sleazy. I was really glad I read “Play With Me” first because I’m not sure I would have read it had I read this one first.

As I said in my review of “Play With Me” I didn’t care for the underage drinking and basically bad moral behavior. There were also a few more grammar errors in this one than there were in the last. Not enough to pull me out of the story, but enough to remind me that the author is not a native English speaker. Honestly though, despite the few errors, I’m very impressed with her ability to write so fluently in her non-native tongue.

I’d say if you really want to find out what’s going on inside Hunter’s head you should read this. If you’d rather he stay mysterious and sexy stick with the first book and leave a little to the imagination.

…. I also don’t care for the cover as much. The blue text on the blue jeans just does not stand out enough to catch my interest.

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REVIEW // “Love You to Death” by Melissa March

I’ve been a terrible blogger, I know. I’ll try to do better. Off the top of my head I know that I have at least two other reviews that I need to post aside from this one.

Without further ado, my review of the brilliant New Adult novel “Love You to Death” by Melissa March.

“Love You to Death” by Melissa March

“Love You To Death” by Melissa March
5 Stars (MUST read!)
Contemporary New Adult

“Love You to Death” is the story of Seventeen-year-old Arden Elliot. Street name Cherry.

An orphan, Arden turns to the streets rather then live with an aunt who does nothing but trash talk Arden’s mother. She quickly forms a bond with Stewie, a young man in his twenties with the mental capacity of a nine-year-old.

When Arden meets Cass all of her warning bells go off, but Cass offer her food. Shoes without holes and clean socks. He helps her in her time of greatest need and soon enough, she’s his. Cass scares her and she knows that if she doesn’t escape, one day he will love her to death.

Along her great escape Arden meets Southern gentleman Gideon and while her heart is telling her yes, her mind is reminding her that she belongs to another and he will stop at nothing to find her.

I could not put this book down. Arden is smart and beautiful and has a real smart  mouth that I can appreciate. She’s so real that by the time I got to the end of the book I was almost crying because I felt like I had to say goodbye to some really good friends.

My favorite character in the book though was probably Sissy, Gideon’s grandmother. She’s a real country gal — overalls and all — and brings a lighthearted humor to the story.

March addresses a lot of deep issues in her book including homelessness and domestic abuse and she does it with such grace and tact that one has to admire her skills as a writer.

Seriously. This book is a must read and Melissa March is an author I’m going to be watching. I can’t wait to read what she comes out with next!

Buy It Here: http://www.fireandiceya.com/authors/melissamarch/loveyoutodeath.html

Add to Goodreads Here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21825370-love-you-to-death

 

** Note: This book is published by the company I work for, I did design the cover art and do receive royalties for each copy sold, however I would never give a positive review to a book that I have not read and/or would not recommend. This book is a gem!