Tag: True Believers

Review: True by Erin McCarthy

Posted October 8, 2014 by Holly in Reviews | 2 Comments

Review: True by Erin McCarthyReviewer: Holly
True by Erin McCarthy
Series: True Believers #1
Also in this series: Shatter
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: May 7th 2013
Genres: Fiction, New Adult
Pages: 320
Add It: Goodreads
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three-half-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

A New Adult novel from USA Today bestselling author Erin McCarthy
When Rory Macintosh’s roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they’ll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job…unbeknownst to Rory.
Tyler has told Rory that he’s not good enough for her. She’s smart, doctor smart, while he’s barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can’t seem to stay away from her, and even when Rory knows she should push him away, something about him makes it nearly impossible for her to resist—even though her heart is at stake…
Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler’s broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost…

Since Rowena and Tracy both reviewed this book already, I’m just going to jump right into what I liked and what I didn’t.

I really liked Rory and Tyler. They were both caregivers in their own way and took care of each other. Rory was such a cute little nerd. I loved how logical she was. Growing up with just her scientist father really stifled her, I think. She was funny and irreverent but only around those she was truly comfortable, like her two roommates, Jessica and Riley. They saw how she really was and wanted to see her gain some confidence, which is why they hired Tyler to take her virginity after she confesses she still has it. 

Tyler, it turns out, has been eyeing Rory since he met her. He thinks she’s funny and quirky and wants to get to know her better. Because she’s shy and always acted reserved around him, he never pursued it. Now that he took her home and spent some time with her, he really steps up his game. He’s had a pretty rotten upbringing with an alcoholic, drug addict mother. He’s trying to pull himself out of the mire and take care of his younger brothers – with the help of his older brothers – but it’s hard. He doesn’t have a lot of time to dedicate to a relationship, but Rory makes things better for him. He was pretty great, honestly. He did his best to be responsible and take care of his mom and brothers. He made some mistakes along the way, but he was kind and respectful and I really liked him.

The problem with the book is the roommates.  A) they paid someone to have sex with her. Hello. And b) they did this after she was almost raped. The first is a problem, but the second nearly killed the book for me.

Rory was at a party waiting for her roommates to finish banging their guys in the bedrooms when the guy she’s waiting with – and kind of fantasizing about – starts in about how much he wants Jessica and then starts kissing Rory. She tries to pull away but he doesn’t realize it and essentially forces her into almost giving him a blowjob. Like, his dick was out of his pants and he was shoving her face toward it while she was struggling to get him to stop. At that point, one of the guys, Tyler, comes out of the bedroom, sees what’s happening and puts a stop to it.

Rory is understandably upset. She almost just had her face raped. Her roommates come out and are like, “OMG! That’s horrible! OMG! Are you okay!?! OMG!” as they should. Except then Rory says she wants to go home and they’re like, “Oh. Okay. It’s too cold to go outside but I’m sure Tyler will drive you home. Buh-bye.” Y’all, I’m not even playing. They flat told her it was too cold to go outside and she should catch a ride with a stranger she knew nothing about, alone. After she was almost raped.

When she gets home she’s pretty drunk and ends up passing out. When she wakes up, the same random guy is sitting on her bed watching her sleep. He was just, you know,making sure she was okay. When she questions him about her roommates he says they went to get breakfast, no big deal. Hey, she was almost just raped. Let’s leave her alone with a random guy, right? The same random guy who was screwing one of the roommates the night before and who, unbeknownst to Rory, they’ve now hired to deflower her.

My head almost exploded. I’m not even kidding.

I kept reading because it’s revealed shortly thereafter (they think Rory is asleep and talk about the situation while she’s in the room) that they paid Tyler to sleep with her. I wanted to see how Rory would react and what would happen. While I’m glad I continued on with the story since Rory and Tyler turned out to be great characters together, I don’t know that I want to continue on with the series. Neither Jessica nor Riley earned feelings of goodwill from me and I don’t know that I can stomach reading their books. I’m reserving judgement for the time being.

The other thing I disliked was how abruptly the story ended. I actually expected the next book to be a continuation of this one, based on the way it ended. I would have liked to see a bit more of their relationship after they reconciled. A novella about them wouldn’t be remiss.

While the actions of the secondary characters really marred my enjoyment, I can’t deny I liked both Rory and Tyler, and the way their relationship progressed. It was kind of sad, emotionally charged, sweet and entertaining, all at once.  

3.5 out of 5 

(I probably would have rated this 4.25 without the roommates)

three-half-stars

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Guest Review: Shatter by Erin McCarthy (+ a Giveaway!)

Posted September 16, 2014 by Tracy in Giveaways, Reviews | 5 Comments

Reviewer: Tracy
Shatter by Erin McCarthy
Series: True Believers #4
Also in this series: True

Publication Date: September 2nd 2014
Genres: New Adult
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

Kylie Warner prides herself on being optimistic, but after finding her best friend in bed with her boyfriend and flunking chemistry, her upbeat attitude has taken a dive. Even an impromptu hook-up with her sexy new chemistry tutor only brightens her mood slightly. After all, it’s not like she’ll ever see the tattooed scholar again…

While he’s a whiz at complex equations, Jonathon Kadisch has trouble when it comes to figuring out women. So when Kylie tells him that she’s pregnant after their night of passion, he’s at a complete loss. He’s prepared to be a good father—unlike his own deadbeat dad—but he’s less prepared to fall for the genuine and alluring blonde bearing his child.

With emotions running high, Kylie wonders if Jonathon’s devotion is out of growing love or looming obligation. And when heartbreak threatens to tear them apart, Jonathon will have to fight for the only girl who’s ever made him feel whole…

 

Tracy’s review of Shatter (True Believers #4) by Erin McCarthy

Kylie is not really an incredibly impulsive person but when the chance to sleep with her tutor, Jonathan, comes up, she takes it. She’s emotionally unavailable as she is still distraught over finding her best friend and boyfriend had slept together. She doubts her choices now as she thought she was in love with Nathan and he turned out to be an ass. What does that say about her?

Jonathan knows it’s wrong to sleep with Kylie as he’s her tutor but he can’t seem to help himself. He’s intrigued by her from the first minute he sees her and can’t get her out of his mind – even when they don’t see each other again.

Cut to a couple months later and Jonathan is in the coffee shop where he and Kylie studied only he is now shell-shocked.  Kylie has told him that she’s pregnant and he’s dumbfounded. He doesn’t handle things well and Kylie walks out. Jonathan starts to rethink his education choices – stop at Masters or go for the Doctorate? – as he knows he now has to provide for his child. He wants to be in the baby’s life and as he spends more time with Kylie he knows that he wants to be with her as well – permanently.

Life has a way of throwing curve balls at people, however, and Kylie’s not sure, when it comes right down to it, if Jonathan is with her because of her or because of the baby. She pushes him away in an attempt to save her heart but she’s already fallen for him.

This was another great book in the series. I really loved Kylie and Jonathan together. He was the hot nerd guy that I always love to read about (and look at). An amazing brain, glasses and tattoos – what’s not to love? On top of that he was a really fantastic guy. Yes, he had his issues – don’t all men? – but he worked through them and I think it made their relationship, in the end, that much stronger.

Kylie was wishy-washy at times but I had to give her kudos for all the emotional (and physical) crap she went through in the space of a year. If that didn’t show her strength, I don’t know what does. I could completely understand her doubts about Jonathan – not because he deserved it but I think I would have been doubting my judgment as well after what she went through.

I really like books where at least one of the characters is “normal”. Let me explain. Kylie came from a good home. She had 2 parents who loved her – siblings and they weren’t poor. She didn’t have a whole lot of angst in her life from her childhood and was really a pretty optimistic person. I know a lot of people don’t care for people who are dark and riddled with issues but when I read a book with a character like Kylie I just love it that much more. There are a crap-ton of people in the world like Kylie who still can get hurt and bounce back, who can still have boy/girlfriend issues and still be an interesting person – with an interesting story! I think in this case Jonathan had enough of the parental issues for both of them.

Overall I found this to be a really great read. It kind of sounded like this was the last book in the series as things seemed to be wrapped up with the couples, but I’m not sure. If it was up to me I think I’d have the author keep going as it’s just so good. 🙂

Rating: 4 out of 5

The Series:
Book Cover Book Cover Book Cover Book Cover

This book is available from InterMix. You can buy it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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four-stars

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Review: Shatter by Erin McCarthy

Posted September 8, 2014 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

Rowena’s review of Shatter (True Believers #4) by Erin McCarthy.

From the USA Today bestselling author of True, Sweet, and Believe comes a tantalizing New Adult novel about finding love in the most unexpected ways…

Kylie Warner prides herself on being optimistic, but after finding her best friend in bed with her boyfriend and flunking chemistry, her upbeat attitude has taken a dive. Even an impromptu hook-up with her sexy new chemistry tutor only brightens her mood slightly. After all, it’s not like she’ll ever see the tattooed scholar again…

While he’s a whiz at complex equations, Jonathon Kadisch has trouble when it comes to figuring out women. So when Kylie tells him that she’s pregnant after their night of passion, he’s at a complete loss. He’s prepared to be a good father—unlike his own deadbeat dad—but he’s less prepared to fall for the genuine and alluring blonde bearing his child.

With emotions running high, Kylie wonders if Jonathon’s devotion is out of growing love or looming obligation. And when heartbreak threatens to tear them apart, Jonathon will have to fight for the only girl who’s ever made him feel whole…

This is the final book in the True Believers series by Erin McCarthy. I wasn’t aware that this was the last book when I read it so that makes me sad since I liked this set of characters but I guess there really isn’t anyone left that needs a story so I’m at peace with this knowledge and I think that McCarthy wrote a pretty great New Adult series that I enjoyed reading.

This book follows the last of the roommates from the beginning, Kylie find her happily ever after (or right now anyway) with her tutor, Jonathan Kadisch. If you read the previous books in this series then you’ll remember Kylie being the girl whose boyfriend cheated on her with Robin, one of Kylie’s best friends and roommate. It was a betrayal that try as she might, she couldn’t get past and I thought she was completely justified in keeping her space from Robin to just be mad about the whole situation and in her anger at Nate. Her heart broke and having one of the girls that you trust betray you like that isn’t an easy thing to get over quickly but I’m glad that she worked through her issues with Robin and that she was working on forgiving her and keeping her in her life because Robin was more than sorry for what happened and I liked her.

I’ve read every book in this series and I’ve got to say that this book was my favorite of the bunch. I liked getting to know Kylie and I loved the romance between her and Jonathan. I liked the way that they were with each other and even when they were both being buttheads, I thought they were cute.

Kylie was such a likable character. She had a great support system in both her family and her friends and when shit hits the fan and she has to make decisions, I thought she rolled with the punches like a champ. She adjusted her plans accordingly and was trying to make the best of an expected situation. I adored seeing her with each of the girls, even Robin and I thought that all four of these girls were the kind of friends that girls need in their lives.

When we first meet Jonathan, I was intrigued by him because he’s so different from the other guys in this series. He’s not this mysterious bad boy. He didn’t just get out of jail. He was a nerd with a big brain and he owned his nerdiness….and I dug that. As much as I liked the other guys in this series, Jonathan was my favorite because he was refreshing and charming and I adored him. He wasn’t perfect. He didn’t know what he was doing with Kylie and had no experience with a girl like Kylie but he didn’t put up much of a fight where she was concerned. There were times when I wanted to smack him upside his head for the choices he made, dating wise and things he said to Kylie but overall, I loved him. He was great.

I think this series ended on a high note and I’m so glad that I read it. I’m sad to see these guys go but I was glad to have been a part of the ride. This was a great contemporary New Adult story and I definitely recommend it.

Grade: 4 out of 5

This book is available from InterMix. You can purchase it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Believe by Erin McCarthy

Posted July 21, 2014 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

Rowena’s review of Believe (True Believers #3) by Erin McCarthy.

Robin used to be a party girl… until she got black out drunk and woke up in bed with her best friend’s boyfriend. Now she’s faced with being THAT girl, and couldn’t be more disgusted with herself. She can’t even tell her friends the reason for her sudden sobriety and she avoids everyone until she meets Phoenix—quiet, tattooed, and different in every way that’s good and oh, so bad…

Phoenix is two days out of jail when he meets Robin at his cousin’s house, and he knows that he has no business talking to her, but he’s drawn to her quiet demeanor, sweet smile, and artistic talent. She doesn’t care that he’s done time, or that he only has five bucks to his name, and she supports his goal to be a tattoo artist.

But Phoenix knows Robin has a secret, and that it’s a naïve dream to believe that his record won’t catch up with them at some point. Though neither is prepared for the explosive result when the past collides with the present…

Believe is the third book in the True Believer’s series and it features Robin, a friend of both Jessica (from Sweet) and Rory (from True) and Phoenix, Tyler and Riley’s cousin.  I’ve been interested in reading this book because the last time we see Robin, she’s done the unforgivable and she knows it. She gets completely wasted and sleeps with her best friend’s boyfriend.  She’s disgusted with herself and she’s given up drinking and partying and has pulled away from everyone, including her best friends.

I was interested in reading this book because I wanted to see how Robin handles the whole sleeping with Nathan and then I was mighty curious to see how Kylie finds out.  And of course, the whole fall out from that.

There were a lot of things that I liked about this book but there was also some things that I didn’t really care for.  I liked getting to know both Phoenix and Robin.  I liked that she didn’t care about his past and that she supported Phoenix, however he needed her to.  I also liked that Phoenix had Robin’s back when the shit hit the fan but something that didn’t add up to me was the way Robin handles everything when Kylie finds out about her and Nathan.  I also didn’t understand how she thought she could get away with not telling Kylie what happened, considering Nathan was still texting her.  She didn’t want to hurt her best friend but she also didn’t think her best friend deserved to know that she was with a complete scumbag?  How in the world did that make sense?  I wish that Robin had handled things with Kylie differently and Tyler’s advice to her about not telling Kylie was stupid.  He should have known better than that.

Aside from those things, I liked the book.  I liked seeing everyone again and I think of all of the heroines we’ve met so far in this series, Rory is my favorite.  I liked the non-judgmental way she was with everyone and I liked how of all of them, she owned up to the boneheaded move of all of them leaving Robin alone.

Overall, this was a good read.  I was a little disappointed that it wasn’t the book I was hoping it to be but in the end, it was good.  I liked that both Robin and Phoenix owned up to their mistakes and worked together in the end to finding that happy ending.

Grade: 3 out of 5

This book is available from InterMix.  You can purchase it here or here in e-format.  This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Sweet by Erin McCarthy

Posted May 1, 2014 by Rowena in Reviews | 0 Comments

Sweet
Rowena’s review of Sweet (True Believers #2) by Erin McCarthy.

Jessica Sweet thought going away to college would finally make her free of her parents’ constant judgments and insistence she play chastity club role model for their church events, but if anything, the freedom has made her realize she can’t go home and be a hypocrite anymore. Tired of dodging their questions, she stays at school over the summer and lands in an unexpected crash pad: Riley Mann’s house.

Sarcastic, cocky, and full of opinions, Riley is also sexy personified with tattoos and biceps earned from working as a roofer all day. Not the right guy for her even if Jessica was looking for a relationship, which she is definitely not. But Jessica knows that Riley hides the burden of having to raise his younger brothers behind that grin and as she helps him get his house in order for a custody hearing, they begin to fall hard for each other, and she is forced to question what she’s hiding herself.

Jessica has never had a problem getting naked with a guy, but when it comes to showing Riley how she truly feels inside, her fear of rejection may just ruin the best thing—the best guy—to ever happen to her…

This is the second book in the True Believers series by Erin McCarthy and the story revolves around the hero from the first books brother and his girlfriend’s best friend and roommate. Riley Mann and Jessica Sweet like to bicker with each other. They spend most of their time together arguing about something or another, which suits them both just fine.

But when Jessica decides not to go home for the summer, she’s stuck without a place to stay until her sublet opens up…which leads her directly into Riley Mann’s house.

Riley lets Jessica stay with him when Tyler and the rest of his younger brothers go to spend a week at Rory’s house. It’s the perfect set up for Jessica since she needs a place to stay and she’s got nowhere else to go. For two people that have bickered as much as they have, over the course of that week, they become close and they inevitably fall for each other.

Riley receives news that he’s going to have to prove he’s a worthy guardian for his younger brother, Easton. He’s got absolutely no faith in the system to give him custody, to keep his family together but with Jessica’s help over the weekend, things are starting to look up. With her interior design skills, together they turn the house around and turn it into a home…rather than a hellhole.

Seeing these two come together was good. I enjoyed getting to know them and I really enjoyed seeing Jessica grow from the girl that I barely liked in True to the person that she ended up being in Sweet. Riley’s brother U kept me laughing throughout the entire book and seeing the family dynamic between Riley and his brothers was nice. I liked seeing them all together and seeing Jess win Easton over.

Riley was difficult to understand. I mean, he came off as rough and tough in True and like Jess, he wasn’t all that likable to me but he came around in this one. In this book, McCarthy kept him crude and rude as possible but it was likable in this book. I thought he was hilarious and I loved how he communicated with Jess. All awkward and cocky at the same time. His jealousy was hard to take at times but not enough that I didn’t enjoy getting to know him anyway.

This book was good. I liked it. Better than the first book and I’m really looking forward to the next book. Man, the whole thing with Robin? Holy crap, I can’t wait to see what comes from all of that drama.

Grade: 4 out of 5

This book is available from InterMix. You can purchase it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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