Tag: Gravity Series

Review: Shooting for the Stars by Sarina Bowen

Posted April 21, 2015 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

shooting for the stars
Rowena’s review of Shooting for the Stars (Gravity #3) by Sarina Bowen.

For one night she had everything.

Pro snowboarder Stella Lazarus has always loved her brother’s best friend. But the one time she tried to show him, she was shot down faster than you can say “competitor disqualified.”

Until one blissful night in Tahoe, when Stella finally gets her man.

Or does she? In the morning, Stella and Bear wake up to horrible news. The sort that sends them racing back to Vermont, and straight into the arms of guilt and family obligations.

For all of Bryan “Bear” Barry’s life, three natural laws held true: his best friend Hank was destined for greatness, Hank’s sister Stella was off-limits, and Bear would always manage to negotiate the rocky paths that life threw his way. In the space of two days, that’s all shattered.

Bear can’t believe he slipped up so badly with Stella. Even if his best friend wasn’t lying broken in a hospital bed, it would still be unforgivable. Determined to do better, he devotes himself to his friend’s recovery, denying himself the very person he loves. And the very thing he needs.

Shooting for the Stars is the third book in the Gravity series and let me tell you, I read this series all out of order. I read the second book first, the first book second and then ended with this book but I thought this series was another good one for Bowen’s back list. I like that she writes romances for the normal person. Her characters are everyday, average people that fall in love and their stories are just as interesting as the rich people.

In this book, we get Stella (Hank “Hazardous” Lazarus’ sister from Book 1) and Bear’s book. Bear is Hank’s best friend and Stella is Hank’s little sister. Bear is having trouble keeping his hands off his best friend’s sister and throughout the book, he drives me nuts. I felt a lot of his issues could have been resolved without wasting as much time as he did by just talking to Hazardous about everything. I wanted him to come clean and stop stringing Stella along because Stella’s longstanding feelings kept getting hurt. By him.

Then there was Stella. My heart hurt for her but over the course of the book, I thought that she kept going back for more when she shouldn’t have. I know that she couldn’t help the way that she felt about Bear but she put herself through some serious pain because she wanted to what? Force Bear into coming clean about his feelings? He should have wanted to do that on his own and she should have let him come to those conclusions on his own.

But even with all of my frustrations between the two of these guys, I still liked the book overall. It wasn’t my favorite book by Bowen but it was still enjoyable. I liked seeing Hank and Callie and seeing Bear’s point of view about the whole Alexis thing.  I also liked that we had a hero, down on his luck and trying to figure out his next move. The movie venture was interesting and I loved how excited and scared Bear was about everything. There’s plenty in this book that I liked and the romance between Bear and Stella was just a part of the book that drove me nuts but in the end, they get together so it’s all good in the hood. I’m still looking forward to more Sarina Bowen books in the future.

Grade: 3.25 out of 5

This book is available from Sarina Bowen. You can purchase it here or here in e-format.

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Review: Coming in from the Cold by Sarina Bowen

Posted April 20, 2015 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

coming in from the cold
Rowena’s review of Coming in from the Cold (Gravity #1) by Sarina Bowen.

Alpine ski champion Dane “Danger” Hollister does not do relationships, though he has an excellent reason. No woman would ever say “I do” to a guy whose faulty DNA will eventually cost him everything: his spot on the US Ski team, his endorsements, and the ability to fly downhill at 90mph.

While Willow Reade moved to rural Vermont to get back to the land, that wasn’t meant to include a night stranded in her vehicle during a blizzard. Luckily, the hot ski racer she practically ran off the road has granola bars and a sleeping bag, and is happy to share. Maybe it’s the close quarters, maybe it’s the snow, but soon the two are sharing a lot more than conversation.

Yet neither can guess how their spontaneous passion will uncork Dane’s ugly secret and Willow’s tentative peace with her own choices. Only their mutual trust and bravery can end the pain and give Willow and Dane a shot at hard won happiness.

This is the first book in the Gravity series and it’s another book by Sarina Bowen that I enjoyed. I thought Sarina Bowen did a great job of telling Danger and Willow’s story and she really writes the kind of heroes that make me want to take a bite right out of them, they’re so yummy.

Dane and Willow meet when they get stuck in a snow storm, in their cars. They decide to hunker down and wait to be saved, together and in the hours before they can get back to their real lives, they talk and get to know each other…and then they really get to know each other. LOL.

Dane is a love ’em and leave ’em kind of guy. He’s not the relationship kind of guy because he’s got a big family secret that he won’t share with anyone but it’s keeping him from really living a life so when Willow comes into his life, he’s not prepared for wanting more with her. He’s never wanted more from any other woman so why is this woman so different? He doesn’t know, just knows that she is.

Willow is having money troubles. She bought a sprawling farm with chickens that she’s having trouble feeding and an ex-boyfriend who left her with the big farm to pay for…on her own. She’s trying to keep everything together and she has good days and bad days and what she thinks is a bad day, turns into a really good day in the form of a sexy professional skier named Dane Hollister.

Circumstances bring Dane and Willow into each other’s orbit for a lot longer than Dane expected and while they try to stay away from each other, the heart wants what it wants and in order for things to work out, they need to work on their issues – so they do. I really liked both Dane and Willow. They were good people with issues that were complicated and interesting. The romance between Dane and Willow was steamy and the bickering was entertaining so this was a really fast read. I felt the chemistry between the two of them and just overall liked it all.

I thought the friendship between Callie and Willow was a good one in Callie’s book but I loved seeing them before Callie met Hank. I loved how fiercely protective Callie was for Willow and I loved how Dane had to work at getting Callie on his side. I thought Dane’s coach was adorable and every time he would run away because Dane and Willow were in the middle of a fight, I laughed.

This book was a cute and fast read that fans of Bowen will enjoy. The hero is sexy as all get out, the heroine is smart and strong and the secondary characters were great as well. I recommend.

Grade: 4 out of 5

This book is available from Sarina Bowen. You can purchase it here or here in e-format.

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Joint Review: Falling from the Sky by Sarina Bowen

Posted March 23, 2015 by Holly in Reviews | 2 Comments

Joint Review: Falling from the Sky by Sarina BowenReviewer: Holly and Rowena
Falling From the Sky by Sarina Bowen
Series: Gravity #2

Publication Date: February 1st 2015
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 266
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

She's the woman he doesn't remember. He's the man she can't forget.
Bad boy Hank “Hazardous” Lazarus used to have everything: a gorgeous girlfriend, a career as a freestyle snowboarder and a spot on the US Olympic team. Nine months ago, after a bad crash in the half pipe, he woke up in the hospital, unable to move his legs. Now he’s landed there again, but gravity is not the culprit. With his family pressuring him to try a groundbreaking treatment, Hank self-medicates with too much tequila instead.
Doctor Callie Anders has the courage to restart a patient’s heart with a thousand volts of electricity, yet she’s afraid to risk her own. So she doesn’t confess to the clinic's newest patient they they met just before the accident, an encounter that he doesn’t remember. Even as their friendship develops, she won’t admit that she regrets turning down his dinner invitation, or that her heart stutters every time those inked shoulders roll through the door of the therapy department.
With another Vermont winter coming again, Hank needs a hand out from under the avalanche of his disappointments. If only Callie were brave enough to take the job.
This book is a standalone novel, no cliffhangers, no prior experience necessary.
"One of the highlights of my 2014 reading year." —Jane Litte at DearAuthor.com
"4.5 stars. Hank and Callie are an inspiration to love stories everywhere. HOT." — RT (Romantic Times) Book Reviews
"What a book! I’m always looking for different, inspiring, more in my books and Sarina Bowen delivers every time." — The Bookish Babe
"Sexy and heartwarming, Falling From the Sky is a story of redemption, trust and falling in love." — Mandi Schreiner of SmexyBooks
Keywords: contemporary romance, sexy romance, medical, sports, snowboarding, Vermont, sports romance, snowboard, spinal cord injury.

Warning: This review contains spoilers! 

Holly: I think the blurb outlines the story pretty well, so there’s no need to recap.

I’ve been in a weird contemporary funk lately, so I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to read this book when I started it. I’m really glad I gave it at try, though, since it ended up being really good.

Rowena:  I think I was getting close to burning out on paranormals so I took a break from them and picked up some contemporary NA. This one came up and I was so glad that I picked it up because Bowen delivered another story that I fell into so easily.

Holly: I really like that we got a glimpse of who Hank was prior to his accident, then watched him try to rebuild (but mostly wallow) after. I have to say, I cringed when he hit the halfpipe. My back hurt in sympathy.

Rowena: I’m with you on being glad to see Hank before the accident. To get that glimpse into the person he was BEFORE the accident. One of my favorite scenes in the book is when Hank is explaining the person he was before the accident to Callie. When he was trying to explain to her why she would have been on his radar back then. His explanation made me swoon a little. I really liked how both him and Callie tackled their issues….by just living through them.

Holly:  I liked his reasons for not remembering Callie. It showed a lot more depth than I expected based on his reaction when he first met her. Though I’m not surprised Callie read the situation wrong since she was so hard on herself. I thought his reaction to having sex (and maybe not being able to) as well. That really rang true for me.

Rowena: I also really liked his reasons for not remembering Callie. I liked that whole speech he gave her and how straight up he was with Callie. There was no trying to sooth Callie’s hurt feelings or smooth things over. He was up front about everything with her. Damn, I feel like I’m making a list. I love this and this and this and this…but anyway, I also really liked every time Hank tried to get jiggy with Callie. He was a big time flirt and I loved it.

Holly: I like that Hank worked things out for himself – his new normal, I mean. No one guided him through, he just realized things on his own. I liked how dirty he was, too. Trying to seduce Callie in the therapy pool and stuff. Good on him.

Rowena: I thought it was super cute how excited he was after the first time they had sex. His reaction to all of that was priceless.

Sarina Bowen did such a great job of showing how hard things got for Hank both physically and mentally after he was injured. Seeing him go through physical therapy and enter the program with no real desire to be apart of it. I was right there with him through it all and I fell in love with him a little more with each passing page.

The thing about Hank was the wheelchair didn’t define him. He was still Hank, just a different version of himself and I loved seeing him come to terms with that. I loved seeing him going after what he wanted (Callie) like a man because too many people looked at him like he was less and he really wasn’t.

Holly: That was my favorite part of the book; Hank realizing he was more than his chair. I really loved that he decided to accept his new situation, and work with what he had.

Rowena: I also really liked Callie. She was just all around great.

Holly:  I liked Callie, but I didn’t really understand why she had the issues she did. Okay, she was too busy studying to really have a social life. I get that. But still, her self-confidence is not what I thought it would be based on her age and profession.

Rowena: Hmm, I never thought about that but you’re right. Why did Callie have the hang ups that she did? Because Hank didn’t remember the first time they met? Or was it solely because of her douche of an ex? Which, kudos to Bowen for giving him what he deserves. Remember when Sherrilyn Kenyon used to make the douche exes suffer at the hands of the new guy? Ha, oh man I loved those…and I loved that Bowen made sure we saw that Peter (that was his name, right?) didn’t get off easy.

Holly: Ha! Those were my favorite scenes in Kenyon’s books. I love it when the exes get their comeuppance. I like that Nathan (that’s the ex’s name, not Peter) got his in the end, too. Served him right. That’s another thing..how was he having a midlife crisis at 30? He’s a doctor, FCOL. He’d have just barely been out of med school. Makes no sense.

I loved her sense of humor, though. She had some of the best zingers. I also liked that she stood up for Hank right from the beginning.

Rowena: I think what I liked most about Callie, outside of her humor, was the way that Hank was just a man to her. She never treated him as anything other than a man.

Holly: I agree, Hank was just a man to Callie. I like that her eyes were opened to the ways people in wheelchairs are treated, but for her they were just people like everyone else. It wasn’t like she was trying too hard or faking it, either. For her, it just didn’t matter.

Rowena:  You know what I didn’t like? Bear (Hank’s best friend) bringing Hank’s ex over. WTF was that about?

Holly:  Okay, at first I was super pissed at Bear for bringing Hank’s ex, too. But then I thought about it a little. He wanted to be a serious filmmaker and he was offered the opportunity to shoot a tourism video for the state of Vermont, which was a paying job. Hank’s ex was an athlete and I’m assuming the state hired her, too. So he probably didn’t have a choice. He could have given Hank a heads up, but I’m sure he figured Hank would hide if he knew, so I forgave him for that. I also forgave him for bringing he over to Hank’s house with him because 1) he wanted Hank to see he wasn’t missing anything (which he wasn’t) and 2) he said he couldn’t take anymore of her on his own (which I believed…she was a piece of work).  In the end, he did Hank a favor. Hank was hung up on her, not because of her, I don’t think, but because she represented his old life. Plus, as he said, he’d forgotten all the bad about her and was wallowing about losing such a great girl. Which, hello…no.

Rowena: Bear had a choice. He could have told the ex, hell I’m terrible with names today because I can’t remember Hank’s ex’s name either. And haha, now I remember Callie’s ex was Nathan so thanks for that, that she was on her own for the night. He didn’t have to bring her at all but you are right that bringing her did Hank a favor in letting him see for himself that he wasn’t missing out on anything. I liked that he was mad at Bear for bringing her over not because he was still hung up on her but because it chased Callie away.

Holly: I agree that Bear had a choice, but he didn’t know about Callie. He watched his friend brood and mope for close to a year over a girl who wasn’t worth it – so he decided to do something about it. Was it cool? No. But I get his heart was in the right place. But yeah, I love that Hank was worried about Callie disappearing more than anything else.

Rowena: When Bear brought over the ex, it wasn’t Callie that I was initially pissed off about. It was Hank. Hank was going through some major emotional drama and I was pissed that Bear brought his past right back into his world. I got over that when I realized that it was exactly what Hank needed but at first? I wanted to punch Bear in his stupid bearded face.

Holly: I get what you’re saying. I was pissed at first, too. I just got over it as soon as I realized what his motivation was.

Holly: Can I be shallow for a minute? Hank has got to be one of the least sexy names, ever. It makes me think of someone blowing their nose.

Rowena:  LOL, I hear you about Hank especially because that’s my brother’s name and even he hates it.

Holly: OMG, how hilarious was the end? I totally cracked up when Callie was like “Did you have to jump it!” and then on screen he was like “Yes, I had to.”  Ha!

Rowena:  The ending was great too. That whole thing with the movie and Hank’s thing at the end was all icing on an already great cake.

I’m really looking forward to reading the other books in this series. I’m going to dig into Dane and Willow’s story once I finish with the book that I’m reading right now. I can’t wait!

Holly: I’m really looking forward to the other books, too. I started Dane and Willow’s book. It’s early yet, but I’m already enjoying it.

Rowena: Overall, this book was great. I thought the pacing of the romance between Hank and Callie was good and the actual romance between the two was sweet. The set up for Bear and Stella’s book was done well too and it’s that book that I’m mostly looking forward to.

Grade: 4.0 out of 5

Holly: I was bothered by Callie’s self-esteem issues and a few other minor things, but overall I really enjoyed this, too. Their romance was sweet and I really liked Hank’s personal journey.

Grade: 3.75 out of 5

Holly’s Grade: 3.75
Rowena’s Grade: 4.0

four-stars

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Gravity Re-Launch by Sarina Bowen (+Giveaway)

Posted February 12, 2015 by Rowena in Promotions | 0 Comments

Gravity Covers

Sarina Bowen is releasing her Gravity series again and FALLING FROM THE SKY is available right now! Aren’t the covers amazing? I love it!

Angsty Vermont snowboarders, anyone?

Check out the blurb for FALLING FROM THE SKY:

She’s the woman he doesn’t remember. He’s the man she can’t forget.

Bad boy Hank “Hazardous” Lazarus used to have everything: a gorgeous girlfriend, a career as a freestyle snowboarder and a spot on the US Olympic team. Nine months ago, after a bad crash in the half pipe, he woke up in the hospital, unable to move his legs. Now he’s landed there again, but gravity is not the culprit. With his family pressuring him to try a groundbreaking treatment, Hank self-medicates with too much tequila instead.

Doctor Callie Anders has the courage to restart a patient’s heart with a thousand volts of electricity, yet she’s afraid to risk her own. So she doesn’t confess to the clinic’s newest patient that they met just before the accident, an encounter that he doesn’t remember. Even as their friendship develops, she won’t admit she regrets turning down his dinner invitation, or that her heart stutters every time those inked shoulders roll through the door of the therapy department.

With another Vermont winter coming again, Hank needs a hand out from under the avalanche of his disappointments. If only Callie were brave enough to take the job.

Sarina Bowen is giving away 2 copies of FALLING FROM THE SKY and a swag pack. Enter by using the Rafflecopter widget below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway
EXCERPT from FALLING FROM THE SKY

“Hi,” Callie said softly. “I’m Doctor Anders. Or Callie, if you wish.”

“Callie,” he cleared his throat. “You look really familiar.”

That wasn’t what she had expected him to say. It would have been as good a time as any to mention that they’d met about ten minutes before his accident, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Who would want to be reminded of that afternoon? “I’ve been here all week,” she said instead. “But we don’t expect you to keep track of the dozens of people who prod you all day.”

“And all night,” he added.

She sat down on a stool next to his bed. “That’s my fault. I need to know that they’re looking at your vitals every three hours. It helps me sleep.” She winked, and was rewarded with half a smile. “Now, quick—before the room is invaded again by nurses’ assistants—how’s your pain? Is there anything you need?”

Hank lifted one hand to his face, and Callie was glad to see it. If his injury had happened farther up his spine, he wouldn’t have been able to do that. With his palm, Hank rubbed several days’ worth of whiskers, which only served to make him look more rugged, while he considered her question. “Let’s see…I need a full rack of Curtis’ ribs, with spicy sauce and a baked potato. And I need to get the hell out of this hospital.”

She nodded obligingly, even though she couldn’t fulfill any of those requests. But if he was talking about food and getting out of here, those were both good signs. “You’ll be transferring to a rehab facility soon.”

“Yeah,” he sighed. His gaze wandered again, his eyes aiming at the window.

“The rehab place will let you sleep through the night,” she said, keeping her voice light. “And you’ll have your own clothes. I hear the food is better, too.”

“Couldn’t really be worse,” he said, turning to face Callie again. His dark eyes locked onto hers, and Callie felt the moment stretch and take hold. He didn’t say anything more, but he didn’t have to. Silently, an understanding passed between them. It didn’t matter if the food got better. Hank Lazarus was in for a shitty time, truly the shittiest time of his life. The distance he’d come these past five days was a descent from the highest high to the lowest low. And there wasn’t a damned thing either of them could do about it.

“Hang in there,” Callie whispered. “This right here is the very worst part.”

He didn’t break their staring contest. “You promise?” he rumbled, his voice pure whiskey and smoke.

Oh snap! This sounds like a good one. It just moved up on my TBR pile. I’m starting it right now!

Buy links: Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo

sarina bowenABOUT THE AUTHOR: Sarina Bowen writes steamy, angsty contemporary romance from Vermont’s Green Mountains. (Her ancestors began logging and farming Vermont during the 18th century. These were rugged, outdoor types without benefit of a laptop or a good latte. It boggles the mind.)

Sarina enjoys skiing, skating and good food. She lives in Windsor County, Vermont, with her family, eight chickens and too much ski gear and hockey equipment.

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