Memory Lane Monday #20: Banana Edition ~ Review ~ What A Boy Wants by Nyrae Dawn

Memory Lane Monday is a weekly meme that Amber at Paradise of Pages and Kristalyn (and Beighley) at The Sarcastic Palmtree, came up with. We have been wanting to re-read some of our favorites but feel overwhelmed by all the other new books coming out that our re-reads get put to the side. We have decided we don't want to put them aside anymore, so we will be taking turns putting up our reviews on our blogs throughout the month. This does not mean we won't keep up with recent releases, it just means we will make more time for those we have read before as well.

Courtesy of watching his mom’s relationships, Sebastian Hawkins knows what girls need to do to get a guy. He has what he considers a PHD in hooking up. When he needs extra cash for a car, Sebastian starts up an online venture as The Hook-up Doctor, to anonymously help girls land the guy of their dreams. Of course, his services don’t offer a happily-ever-after guarantee. He’s seen firsthand getting together never means staying together.
And then he falls in love…
With the last girl he would expect…
Totally not in his game plan.
Suddenly, Sebastian finds himself muddled in the game he’s always prided himself on. He can’t even pick up girls at parties anymore! Why would anyone want to be in love when it turns you into a stuttering, screwed-up, mess with really lame stalker tendencies? Stalking? Totally not his gig.
But the Hook-up Doctor won’t let himself go down easily. He’s always known how to give a girl what she wants and now it’s time to figure out what a boy wants… and he definitely plans on getting it.

If you would like to see my memory post for this book you can click here!

At First Sight

So... Yeah... the cover gives a good character description for Sebastian, which I like a lot.  There are LOTS of books out there that have people on the cover that don't really relate to what the book ends up describing them, which sucks a lot.

Characters and Relationships

Although Sebastian may seem like some regular fake jerk on the outside, you really get to see that there's no way that could be possible because he always does everything with good intentions.  He has seen a lot of jerks hurt his mom, which is why he is very close to and protective of her.  It's also why he doesn't really do the whole relationship thing.  What I like is that he and his friends are all one tight group, they all support each other, no matter what life throws at them.  The only other character I really enjoyed this time around was Party Girl Crystal.  I forgot she makes many appearances throughout the book and I like her role in the overall story.

Is This A Kissing Book?

Yes... it IS a kissing book... That being said... the story isn't all based on being romantic and stuff, it's more about discovering what it's like to find something more serious than a fling or hook-up and chasing after the person of your dreams.

Don't Leave Me Hanging

There really isn't a cliffhanger, BUT there is another book.  It's more like one of those endings where you go "awwwww"...  Now I'm not saying that's what I did... but it's definitely a nice ending to the book.

The Best Gems

• Hook-Up Doctor Emails
• Horrible Flowery Scents
• Fun at the Beach  ;)
• The Good Ol' Hug n' Roll
• Hanging with Party Girl Crystal
• Chunky Monkey Ice Cream

The Sum Up

I love this book!  It's the first independent book I ever read and I think that if I had read any other one at the time, I would've never tried another one again.   I definitely recommend this book to everyone... especially those who are looking for a book that's a little more like a Romantic Comedy.  Nyrae Dawn does an AMAZING job at writing a boy voice that I can't even describe how well she does it.  I also love her overall style of writing.  She had me captivated from the first chapter and, for some reason, I almost liked it better the second time around.  I've read this book multiple times and I'll definitely read it again!

Thanks for visiting!  Come back next week to see my review of the amazing sequel "What A Boy Needs"... 

~Banana

Here's how Memory Lane Monday works:

• Each week the co-hosts will trade off with recapping when it is a re-read or what they have heard so far about the book and the other co-host will put up their review. 
• The participants can read anything that they remember reading in the past, or something that they have wanted to read that has been around for a while and just haven't gotten around to reading it yet for whatever reason.
• Participants can decide if they want to recap the book before reading it or just put up a review of what they read.
• Anyone can join in, just please link back to our blogs as well as add your name to the linky so we can hop around and see what everyone is reading.
• Please put our banner on your post as well, so we all look the same!
• We ask you kindly to follow BOTH of our blogs.
• Most importantly remember to just have fun! :)

We will be providing each week a linky that you will be able use to link your posts for us and everyone else to see as well. All we ask is for you to put up our banner as well as a link back to both hosts on your post. 

Blogoversary Questions Answered and Giveaway Winners Announced

1 year Blogoversary Q&A and Giveaways announcement

Our 1 year Blogoversary has come and gone.  We have had a couple great weeks of celebration and now we are excited to announce all of our giveaway winners (you should have been contacted by email already if you won) and answer your questions 

if you took that option on our giveaway.




So let's get started first with a little Q&A!
Kristalyn (aka Flamingo) will be answering in Pink
Beighley (aka Banana) will be answering in Yellow

Our first question comes from our blogger bestie AMBER HODGES...

"If you could design a cover for any book you read, which one would you pick?"
Amber, this question is the hardest ever!  I am not artistically inclined at all, so I don't think about stuff like this.  I would love to think if I had the ability, I would design the covers for The Tiger's Curse or The Infernal Devices series just like they are, because they are beautiful.

First you're trying to kick me out of my room and now this!?  This is a really hard question... I have seen some bad covers over the years... My least favorite thing is when the covers are changed... especially if they're not as good as the last... If I had to design a cover for a book... If I could steal the credit for book cover designs, in addition to the others, I'd probably pick the Michael Vey series.





Kaitlyn Petrow asks...

"Do you prefer book-to-movie or book-to-TV adaptations???"
Well, the one Book to TV adaptation that I LOVE is Vampire Diaries (mostly due to Ian Somerhaulder) and I really hated the one book that I read of that series so I would say that in this case, I like that particular adaptation very much.

Since @lynniespalmtree just told you our only book-to-TV adaptation we like to watch... I'll tell you that, out of all of the book-to-movie adaptations that we've seen, and that would be a lot, our favorite would be Catching Fire, hands down.  So, to answer your question... both are good, but book-to-movie adaptations are the way to go.




Monique Mo Books wants to know...

"If you could be a character from any book, go to any world, who would you be?  Where would you go? And (again from any book) who would you bring with you?"
Monique, are you trying to kill me here?  Okay, here's the deal, I always feel like I AM the character while I'm reading a book, so I would just for once, like to fictionally be myself.  I would like to visit Crescent Cove from the book "Chasing Forever Down" (not really another world but I REALLY want to go there) because it is a beach and I love beaches and I would definitely take Kishan from Tiger's Curse with me because he is my favorite book boyfriend ever.  

This is a hard question... I too always see the book through the character's eyes so I'm gonna be my fictional self as well.  I'd probably like to go to the Wizarding World from Harry Potter because there's a lot of history from this world and it'd be cool to be able to see everything there was because there's so much.  Also, I'd take a fun trip to London on my way there!   I would probably bring Rose Hathaway from Vampire Academy or Haymitch Abernathy from The Hunger Games Trilogy because we all kinda have the same personalities, give or take a little, and they both know how to survive just in case we'd run into trouble.



Celestia Anderson had a question, even though she didn't post it in her comment...

"Have you thought about having a weekly picture feature of either a book, TV, or movie as sort of a 'Picture of the week?'"
I haven't thought about it, but don't be surprised if sometime in the near future you see a new feature on our side bar that has this feature!

Great idea!  I'm on it!


Jaclyn Atencio, Flamingo's sister's daughter asked...

"Do you have a favorite niece?  If so, who would it be?"
My dear sweet Jaclyn...I may or may not have a favorite Niece, but ALL of my Nieces need to remember this one important fact:

You absolutely know you got your's from me!

If I had a favorite niece right now... I'd be VERY worried. ;) 


Julianne Atencio Flamingo's sister's other daughter asked...

"What is you favorite book/series?"
My #1 all time favorite book series is Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck

My favorite book series forever and always will be The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins



Tiffany Meadows said...

"What is your best suggestion for a book for boys age 10-12?"
I would suggest Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer by John Grisham.  I have read 2 of the books in this series (there are 4 now) and thought they were excellent and perfect for a boy or girl in this age range or older.


I have a couple answers, but the best one I could think of is Fablehaven by Brandon Mull.  I'd actually recommend this to anyone because it's a really good series.

Ashley Van Horn asks...

"Do you prefer reading real physical copies of books or digital?"
I don't have much of a preference.  I like the weight of my kindle, but also don't mind holding a book even when some of them are long and heavy.  I like physical copies because I can read them in the tub which I would never do with my kindle.  

I never really liked the idea of a Kindle... until I got one!  I never read physical copies anymore because reading on my kindle is so much easier.  Plus I like being able to read on the app on my phone while I'm at the doctor's office or something, and then being able to pick up right where I left off on my Kindle when I get home!  


Our last question comes from Christine Bell...

  "Have you ever tried a fresh homemade piña colada?"


I have not....but if you have a recipe for me, I'm more than willing to give it a try!

Nope!  I've had a Piña Colada Slurpee from 7 Eleven though... It was amazing!  I'd definitely wanna try the real deal though!

*WINNERS*
Thank you to everyone who entered our giveaway!  It was our best giveaway yet and I am grateful to everyone one of our followers, readers, friends or whomever you are that has supported our blog in the last year or in the future!  Without further ado...here are our winners:

X-Men 2 Blu-Ray ~ Deborah Gardner
Don't Panic by Lindsay Paige ~ Celestia Anderson
Die For Me by Amy Plum ~ Tiffany Meadows
Beautiful Creatures by Garcia/Stohl ~ Charlee Alsup
Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck ~ Amber Hodges
Bloodlines by Richelle Mead ~ Ahsley Van Horn
Origin by Jessica Khoury ~ Robert Zimmerman
American Girl On Saturn ebook ~ Monique LeBlanc
Forever Changed by Tiffany King ~ Jessica Nicole
Swag Pack ~ Kaitlyn Petrow
Swag Pack ~ Jennifer Johnson
Swag Pack ~ Ashley Soler

Thank you again everyone for making our first year so special!  Hope you continue to visit us often!

Waiting For Prince Harry by Aven Ellis ~ Book Blitz

WAITING FOR PRINCE HARRY
Author: Aven Ellis
Genre: Humorous Contemporary RomanceStandalone Novel
Publisher: Soul Mate
~ SYNOPSIS ~
Twenty-four-year-old Kylie Reed has always been a rule follower. Organized and cautious to a fault, her dreams for life are often filed away for future use—when she has a house, when she meets her future husband, when she has been at her visual display job at a chic Dallas boutique longer...Kylie always has a reason for living her life in the future, not in the present, and not living her life to the fullest and reaching her dream of becoming a fashion designer.


The only exception to rules, of course, would be running away with Prince Harry—Kylie’s ideal man. A hot, fun ginger boy would be worth breaking all the rules for, of course. And Kylie is sure Harry just needs the right, centering woman to settle him down. But living in Dallas and not knowing Prince Harry make this a non-option.

Or does it?

Because when Kylie accidentally falls into the lap of a gorgeous ginger boy—yes, even more gorgeous than the real Prince Harry—all bets are off. Could this stranger be the one to show Kylie how to take a chance, to face her fears, and live in the present? And could this stranger be the Prince Harry she has been waiting for? Kylie’s life takes some unexpected twists and turns thanks to this chance encounter, and she knows her life will never be the same because of it...

Add on Goodreads

~ PURCHASE LINK ~

Amazon  

~ EXCERPT ~

 After we finish dessert, Harrison extends his hand to me. A million butterflies take off in my stomach as I know we’re approaching a different point in the evening now. I give him my hand and he wraps his large hand around mine, squeezing it tightly in his.

I don’t even trust myself to remember to breathe the second he touches me. He leads me to the living room. Harrison sits down on the couch and pulls me down into his lap.

“This,” Harrison says quietly, “is what I’ve wanted to do all night.”

Now his fingertips are trailing up and down my arm, just barely touching it, in a feather-like graze.

“Is that so?” I whisper back, barely functioning now that I feel his skin against mine.

“Kylie, do you remember how I said I didn’t want our first kiss to be what it was?” Harrison whispers.

“I do, but I didn’t mind that.”

Harrison laughs softly. “I know you didn’t. But it’s not how I wanted that moment to be.”

I swallow hard. “How did you want the moment to be?”

Harrison stares at me. He lightly runs his fingers up my arm, across my shoulder, and gliding them up my neck to my cheek, stroking my face again and making every nerve I have jump with desire.

“Gentle,” he whispers. “Like you.”

Harrison slides his hand to the back of my head, cradling it as he moves my face closer to his.

“You have the most beautiful eyes,” Harrison whispers, staring deeply at me. “I see everything I want to see when I look into them.”

I’m melting from the way he’s looking at me, the way he’s talking to me, the way he’s touching me. Harrison’s caressing the nape of my neck now. I lift my hands and wind them around the back of his neck, and I finally touch his ginger curls. They feel like silk against my fingertips, and my nerves jump again in response.

“What do you see right now?” I whisper to him.

“I see,” Harrison whispers back, his fingertips dancing up and down the nape of my neck, “a gorgeous woman who wishes I would kiss her.”

~ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ~

Aven Ellis

Aven Ellis has been writing fiction since she was sixteen. She studied communications at a large Midwestern university, and after graduation, Aven worked as a reporter for a community newspaper, followed by a stint at a public relations agency.

But writing about city council meetings and restaurant franchises was not as much fun as writing for young women trying to figure out their careers and potential boyfriends. So Aven got herself a job in television that allowed her to write at night. Connectivity is Aven’s debut novel; Waiting For Prince Harry and Chronicles of a Lincoln Park Fashionista (New Adult romantic comedy) will be published next year.

Aven lives in Dallas with her family. When she is not writing, Aven enjoys shopping, cooking, connecting with friends on social media, and watching any show that features Gordon Ramsay.

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