I Hate Everyone But You Book Recommendations

I saw Steph Bohrer do this over on her channel and I couldn't help but think of all the recommendations I had for this category! I linked her video if you want to go watch that, and I would recommend it, she has some great books on there. I have this split into two sections. There's a new adult romance section and a YA section. In case you don't really know what this trope is, it's pretty self-explanatory. Romances where one of the love interests hates everyone except for their person. One of my favourite tropes.

New Adult Romances

The Sea of Tranquility

“I know at that moment what he's given me and it isn't a chair. It's an invitation, a welcome, the knowledge that I am accepted here. He hasn't given me a place to sit. He's given me a place to belong.”

The main character Nastya has a major chip on her shoulder throughout the entirety of this book, same goes for her love interest Josh. They both sort of hate the entire world around them, but they find solace  in each other. This was such a tragic but beautiful love story. It leaves off on a bit of a cliff hanger, but I'm optimistic. I believe in them. I believe in their love. And absolutely beautiful love story. 

Killswitch

“How I’d never hated anyone as much as I hated him, but how I loved what I felt with him more than I loved anything I felt with anyone else, either.”

Does Damon like anyone? The answer to that is no. Except Winter. And not even in the beginning of the book. I just loved these two. Damon has always been my favourite character in this series and I loved reading his story. 

The Other Man

“Why the hell did I like him so much?
He was uncivilized.
Churlish.
Uncouth.
And strangely, kind of Sweet”

Heath is rough around the edges. He's such an asshole to everyone around him. He is absolutely terrifying, but he has such a soft spot for Lourdes. It really makes you feel special just reading about it. 

Fever series

“Unpredictable as a hungry lion, he might be feared by everyone else, but he never ripped out my throat, only licked me, and, if his tongue was a little rough sometimes, it was worth it to walk beside the king of the jungle.” - Shadowfever

Barrons literally hates everyone. SPOILERS: There were a few instances throughout the series where it was heavily implied that if it were not for Mac, Barrons wouldn't even really be in human form most of the time. Or at all. He would let his monster take over. 

Young Adult Romances

Carry On

“What you are is a fucking tragedy, Simon Snow. You literally couldn't be a bigger mess."
He tries to kiss me, but I pull back- "And you like that?"
"I love it." He says
"Why?"
"Because we match.”

Need I say more? Baz is a total snob and doesn't really have any real friendships in the beginning of this series. He isn't close to anyone but Simon who he pretends to hate. 

Dare You To

“You're a lot like that bird in the barn. You're so scared that you're going to be caged in forever you can't see the way out. You smack yourself against the wall again and again and again. The door is open, Beth. Stop running in circles and walk out.”

Beth has issues. She is a pissed off teen whose defence mechanism is snark. She has like one close friend. She hates everyone around her because she has no reason to like anyone. 

Stalking Jack the Ripper

“Roses have both petals and thorns, my dark flower. You needn’t believe something weak because it appears delicate. Show the world your bravery.”

I don't think this one is necessarily hate, but Thomas does not have any friends. He doesn't like anyone around him. He loves Audrey Rose, but everyone else around him is pretty much replaceable, except for his sister. 

Cruel Prince

“Most of all, I hate you because I think of you. Often. It's disgusting, and I can't stop.”

The title really says it all. Cardan is salty as fuck most of the time. He even hates Jude most of the time, but she plays his games. Everyone else around him is either abusive or an ass kisser. 

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Top 10 Favourite Books of 2020 + Giveaway

I know I pretty much stopped posting again, but I promise that won't last long. I just fried my brain from writing so many final papers for school, and the idea of blogging sounded mind-numbing to me. That's why I didn't make any of my other Top 10 posts for the end of the year. I'm going to post this and then I'm going to take a break for maybe another week or two and then I will hopefully want to start posting again. So this is going to be the list of my favourite books of the year! As always there will be a giveaway so don't worry! Also, I know last year I had my least favourite books included but I just didn't read enough books that I disliked to make a top 10 list. 

1. Chain of Gold

I loved this book so much. I know I say this every time, but you can see so much improvement with every book Cassandra Clare writes. I've never seen an author who has managed to up her game so much with each book she writes. Honestly, you can't even know how surprised I was when this didn't win the Goodreads Choice award. I was the embodiment of the surprised Pikachu face. 

2. From Blood and Ashes

This was a complete surprise. You guys know I've loved Jennifer L. Armentrout's books a lot in the past. The first review I ever posted on my blog was for Obsidian. I've just felt in the past few years I had been outgrowing her books a little bit. But then. From Blood and Ashes came in and changed my mind. This book was New Adult and I felt so much joy when reading this one. Or rather listening. I listened to the audiobook for this one and it was so good. I finished it in maybe two days of non-stop listening.

3. Hunting Prince Dracula

I loved everything about this book from the setting to the vibes to the mystery. I also reading Escaping from Houdini this year, but I definitely liked this one better. I've said this before, and I'll say it again: I want to live in a possibly haunted castle in Romania in the middle of winter. That sounds exactly like my vibe. 

4. Nightfall

The finale to one of my favourite NA romance series' of all time. It was long as fuck but it didn't even feel that long. We had so many characters and so many different secrets and stories that it worked. There was never a part where I wished it was shorter or that I got bored reading. Everything was so intentional and it built to this crescendo. It was amazing and I would gladly wait for it all over again. 

5. A Discovery of Witches

They had me at Witches. You guys know. You know. I am who I am and I doubt I'll change. Mention witches and I'm there. I understand why they decided to make this book into a show. Not that I'm for sure going to watch the show. I mean I probably won't. There is so much going on, a lot of it we still don't understand. It's a pretty long book, but we've barely scratched the surface. It's got such a fascinating world and I can't wait to read the other books. 

6. Tunnel of Bones

This is currently the only middle-grade series I am actively invested in. Much like a lot of the previous books, this series just matches my vibe. I love what this series is doing. This series is about a, I think 12, a year-old girl travelling the world with her parents as they check out the most haunted cities for their ghost hunting show. Little do they know she can see and talk to ghosts. This series is just so much fun and every time I read a new book I find so much joy in the little adventures she has.

7. Brothersong

I still love Wolfsong the best out of all the books in this series, but this book is still one of my favourites of the year. We finally got to see a full circle moment where all the dramas from the past books were finally resolved even if they made me cry. I mean, it's not like it's very hard to make me cry. This was a very good final chapter to the story though.

8. Praying for Rain

I'm sort of including the whole trilogy in this one. This trilogy could have been one long book. I'm not really a dystopian kind of girl anymore, but this post-apocalyptic NA romance was just an A+. It had everything: The apocalypse, a sketchy but attractive love interest, the main character that has issues but is still very lovable. It was just a really enjoyable series. My mind is a little fuzzy on some of the details since I read this one at the very beginning of the year, but I still remember that I really enjoyed it. 

9. Crescent City

I was debating whether or not to put this on the list. There were a lot of things I loved about this book but also a lot of things I didn't love *cough cough* Hunt. I loved the main character and her relationships with her friends. Her friends made this book a 5 star. I was really close to giving it 4 stars because honestly, this book was heavy and sad and I really don't like Hunt. Who was unfortunately in this book a lot. However, the good won out over the bad and I would feel guilty not including this one because it did really impact me. Despite the things I didn't like I would still say this was one of my favourites. I just hope things get better in the next book.

10. Beyond the Sea

This was a last-minute favourite. I originally had another book in this spot, but after reading this one I had to include it. If you want a good gothic romance this is it. I love a good gothic, I especially love a good gothic romance. This book takes place in a seaside town in Ireland. There's a creepy house and a lot of mystery. So good. It's so good. I listened to the audiobook and I had a great time. Have I mentioned I love Irish accents? If you would like to listen to a nice Irish lady read this book to you I would highly suggest listening to the audiobook. 

Now onto the part that everyone is probably the most excited for: The Giveaway!

Rules:

• The giveaway is international as long as The Book Depository ships to you
• You have to be following my blog
• You have to be 18 or have parental permission
• There will be two winners who will receive their choice of one of the books off my favourites list or a book that is in the same series as one of the books.
• This giveaway will run from January 5th, 2021 to February 5th, 2021.

Enter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Kill Switch Blog Tour: Excerpt and Review

Kill Switch by Penelope Douglas

Release Date: February 11th

Kill Switch, an all-new standalone dark romantic suspense by Penelope Douglas.

WINTER

Sending him to prison was the worst thing I could’ve done. It didn’t matter that he did the crime or that I wished he was dead. Perhaps I thought I’d have time to disappear before he got out or he’d cool off in jail and be anything but the horror he was.

But I was wrong. Three years came and went too fast, and now he’s anything but calm. Prison only gave him time to plan.

And while I anticipated his vengeance, I didn’t expect this.

He doesn’t want to make me hurt. He wants to make everything hurt.

DAMON

First thing’s first. Get rid of her daddy. He told them I forced her. He told them his little girl was a victim, but I was a kid, too, and she wanted it just as much as I did.

Step two… Give her, her sister, and her mother nowhere to run and no fuel to escape. The Ashby women are alone now and desperate for a knight in shining armor.

But that’s not what’s coming.

No, it’s time I listened to my father and took control of my future. It’s time I showed them all—my family, her family, my friends—that I will never change and that I have no other ambition than to be the nightmare of their lives.

Starting with her.

She’ll be so scared, she won’t even be safe in her own head by the time I’m done with her. And the best part is I won’t have to break into her home to do it.

As the new man of the house, I have all the keys.

Kill Switch is suitable for readers 18+. While it can be read as a stand-alone, all of the characters are developed throughout the series. The first two books, Corrupt and Hideaway, are now available through Kindle Unlimited!

Download your copy today or read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2I4Vsry

Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/KillSwitchPD

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2t3W5r4

Excerpt:

WINTER

“I’m sixteen, and I’ve never been kissed.” I put my hands on his chest, feeling my breasts grazing his body. “I waited for you.”

“Winter…”

“I waited for you,” I repeated, panting and brushing his lips with mine. “But I won’t wait forever.”

I layered my lips with his and dipped my tongue out, flicking his lip as I rolled my hips on him. The unmistakably hard ridge of his cock rubbed against my panties through his jeans, and I moaned.

He grabbed me under my arms, holding me up to his face. “That better not be a threat,” he bit out.

And then he took my face in one hand and snatched up my lips, biting my bottom one, almost chewing it like he was starving.

He groaned, I whimpered, and we both gave in, holding each other in our arms, our mouths melting together.

I was fast and clumsy, and I couldn’t keep up with his kisses and tongue in my mouth, but I loved every second.

He nibbled and bit and took with force, gripping the back of my hair to tip my head back and eat at my neck. He moved from my throat to my chin to my jaw and then back to my mouth, and I clutched at his shoulders, tugging on his sweatshirt as I dry-humped him. God, I couldn’t stop myself. He felt so good. It was like an itch that I needed to scratch more and harder.

I tugged at my bow tie, unable to breathe.

Pulling it loose, I unbuttoned my top button, finally feeling freer and diving in, hugging him to where he was sucking on my neck.

My hips moved back and forth, grinding into him

“Winter…” he groaned, pulling back. “I don’t want to…”

I picked up pace, and he grabbed my ass, helping me move.

“Don’t want to what?” I gasped out.

“Make you dirty.”

I slowed, touching his mouth with mine and kissing him softly.

Why would he think that?

“You won’t.” I shook my head, touching his face. “We won’t go all the way. We’ll just play.”

He breathed out a laugh.

I kissed him, and he dug his fingers in again, making my body explode and every inch of skin come alive. God, I loved it when he did that.

About Penelope: 

Penelope Douglas is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. Her books have been translated into fourteen languages and include The Fall Away Series, The Devil’s Night Series, and the stand-alones, Misconduct, Punk 57, and Birthday Girl. Please look for Kill Switch (Devil’s Night #3), available now.

She lives in Las Vegas with her husband and their daughter.

Connect with Penelope:

Be alerted of her next release: http://amzn.to/1hNTuZV

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/penelope-douglas

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PenelopeDouglasAuthor

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/PenDouglas

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/1xvDwau

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/penelope.douglas/

Website: https://www.penelopedouglasauthor.com

Email: penelopedouglasauthor@hotmail.com

And all of her stories have Pinterest boards if you’d like to enjoy some visuals: https://www.pinterest.com/penelopedouglas/

My Thoughts:

I received an ARC for an honest review

Disclaimer: If you haven’t read the first two books in this series yet, then don’t read this review. Although it is spoiler free, I can’t guarantee that if you know nothing about the series. Do yourself a favour and read the first two books first without knowing much. It’ll be great I promise.

I gave this book 5 stars. This is by far going to be one of my favorite books of the year. There is something about this series that always has me on the edge of my seat. I love the angst, the relationships, and the antics. 

The gang is finally back together. Well, not fully together, there is still tension, but it’s entertaining tension. The last book left us off with Damon finally back where he belonged and so this book was bound to see some more hands-on conflict between the Horsemen and conflict there was. I loved reading about all of their antics and pranks.

This book finally put together all the puzzle pieces that we were missing. So many gaps were filled in where we didn’t even realize they were missing from. Penelope Douglas did an amazing job of organizing all the plot points together and adding shock after shock. I expected nothing less from Damon’s book.

I have to say that Damon is probably my favorite of the Horsemen. What can I say I have a thing for the bad boys. I loved the first two books but the anticipation for those two had nothing on the excitement I had for this one.

Damon is really flushed out in this novel. While we did find out more about him in Hideaway, we got a full-fledged human being in Kill Switch. With all of his sharp edges, we also got some of his soft spots. Damon was never who we thought he was. He was so much different than what we believed him to be even after Hideaway. Damon is an antihero of the best variety.

I had to wait till the book actually came out in order to read the little snippet of Nightfall at the end as it wasn’t in the ARC and I have to tell you it’s very confusing. Guys, we’re really gonna be in for it when Nightfall comes around, I can already tell. And without giving too much away, it does have a very Lord of the Flies vibe going on. It has me very intrigued.

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Want You Spoiler Free Review

Want You
by Jen Frederick

Release Date: July 1st, 2018

Synopsis:

Bitsy: I might be only nineteen, but I know what I want. It’s Leka Moore. I don’t care that he took me in when he was barely more than a kid himself. I don’t care that he raised me. I don’t care everyone thinks being with him is wrong. I know we belong together, and the only person I need to convince is him.

Leka: I found her in the corner of a dark alley. If I hadn’t taken her with me, she would’ve died that night—or maybe worse. Before I knew it, she became the light in my dark life, the haven from the madness. I watched her grow up. I tried to teach her right from wrong. Now that she’s an adult, I’m feeling things that no good man should ever feel. But then…I’ve never been a good man. I have a chance at redemption by saving her from the greatest danger of all—me.

My Thoughts:

I received an ARC for an honest review

I gave this book 5 stars. It has taken me a while to actually get a review for this book written and I feel kinda bad about it, but it’s okay because I’m finally getting to it now.

My initial thought was that this book reminded me of one I read a few months prior to the release of this one called the Boy and His Ribbon. Had a pretty similar premise, a boy takes a young girl under his wing. Neither of them has good lives they’re pretty much street rats and are often seen as siblings. 

If you’ve been reading my blog posts for the past few months you know I really loved the Boy and His Ribbon but it absolutely ripped me to shreds. I’m happy to say that with this one it wasn’t quite as traumatizing and I’m now happy to replace the horrible memorize I had of the first book and replace them of happy memorize of Want You. Basically, Want You is how I wanted the Boy and His Ribbon to end, but after a quick skim read of the sequel to that one I knew I wouldn’t be getting what I wanted out of it. 

Want You follows Leka and Bitsy, two troubled “orphans”. It takes place over several years as the two grow up together. The two have an overwhelming chemistry that the two skirted around for quite some time. 

There are some parts that got a bit brutal, but it wasn’t anything too bad so if you’re worried about that don’t worry, nothing too horrible happens in this book. 

Overall, I would highly recommend this book. It had a perfect combination of a slow-burning romance and some thrilling subplots. Also, if you liked the Boy and His Ribbon, but wanted something with a nicer ending, I would highly recommend this one.

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The Peer and the Puppet Spoiler Free Review

The Peer and the Puppet
by B. B. Reid

Release Date: July 22nd, 2018

Synopsis:

THE PUPPET

Borrow the bike. Win the race. Collect the cash. It should've been an easy job. Ran out of town with a broken leg and a lawsuit, my mother's latest flame swoops in like a knight in gilded armor. Blackwood Keep is a place I don't belong, and I'm not the only one who knows. To the boy across the hall, my savior's only son, I'm a stray looking for a bone.

He's lord of the manor.

King of the academy.

And number one on my shit list.

THE PEER

I have no intentions of becoming a happy family with the social climber and her wild daughter. A bottle of Jameson and a cracked skull gets my problem shipped to reform school, but I didn't bank on her returning.

Four's out to get even, and she almost had the perfect plan: expose the privileged kid moonlighting as a gangbanger. She's smart, but she'll have to be smarter. Sending her away won't be good enough this time. I'm going to have to tame the little troublemaker. To the girl across the hall, the one without a name, I'm nothing without my silver spoon.

She's lady of the trailer park.

Queen of the swamps.

And my new favorite pastime.

The Peer and the Puppet is a standalone romance, however, the series is one story. The plot introduced in Four and Ever's story will continue in the following novels. Content suitable for 18+.

My Thoughts:

I received an ARC for an honest review

I gave this book 5 stars. I was so excited to get this book and once I did I read it straight through. I was on vacation in New York and I was supposed to be sightseeing and shopping, but I literally took every chance I could to just stop and read this book.

Originally this novel was supposed to be released back in March, but the author felt it wasn’t the best it could be and so, it was put off for many long difficult months.

The Peer and the Puppet was everything I wasn’t expecting and it blew me away. I loved the main characters and loved their chemistry.

Four is from the wrong side of the tracks, but she’s also southern which to me painted a pretty funny picture. She was extremely street smart but was described as having a really strong southern accent and to me, that was just hilarious.

Ever is the privileged rich boy with a chip on his shoulder. I found he was a bit different than some of the author's previous romantic interests in that he seemed a lot softer. I was actually glad to see some flexibility in how the author writes her characters as I definitely found that softer side more fitting of Ever’s background.

The fact that the whole mean girl aspect of the story was flipped on its head with Barbie made me really happy. Barbie wasn’t what she seemed to be and was really misinterpreted for the majority of the book, but once you get to know more about her you start to understand her motive for things. 

It has been confirmed that there are going to be at least two sequels to this novel about other characters, but something else I would love is if we would get an eventual sequel for Four and Ever as there is a loose end that definitely still needs to be tied up.

This is a book I would recommend for lovers of Penelope Douglas books, other B. B. Reid novels, and the Royals series by Erin Watt. This is definitely within the clique.

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The Mid Year Freak Out Book Tag

Since I see absolutely everyone doing this tag, I guess I’ll do it too. I will link the two creators here and here. 

Now that I am finally on Summer Vacation I promise I will actually have more content up for you guys. My next post will either be my June Wrap Up because I actually have one for June, or it'll be a Top 5 Wednesday. Pinky Swear.

1 - THE BEST BOOK YOU'VE READ SO FAR IN 2018

Wolfsong by T. J. Klune. I can’t even describe how much I loved this book. It's full of magic and emotion and it's extremely gay and I love it.

2 - YOUR FAVOURITE SEQUEL THIS YEAR

Leah on the Offbeat was by far the best I’ve read this year. I mean there are some others that are pretty good but this was my favorite.

3 - A NEW RELEASE THAT YOU HAVEN'T READ BUT YOU REALLY WANT TO

A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J Maas. I preordered this book, it came in the mail, I read the first five pages, then I put it down and started reading other books.

4 - MOST ANTICIPATED RELEASE FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR

This is a three-way tie between the Darkest Star by Jennifer L Armentrout, Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas, and Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare. I have all three preordered and I want them all in my hands right this minute.

5 - YOUR BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT 

Burn Before Reading Sara Wolf. Sara Wolf is one of my favorite authors and I expected so much more from this book. It just fell very flat for me.

6 - BIGGEST SURPRISE OF THE YEAR

Lover Enshrined by J. R. Ward. I put off reading this book for years and then I read it and loved it. I didn't expect much because when I looked at reviews the general consensus was that it wasn't as good as the others, but I wholeheartedly disagree.

7 - FAVOURITE NEW TO YOU OR DEBUT AUTHOR

Samantha Shannon. I read the Bone Season and fell in love. It was so well written and I can't wait to read the next installment.

8 - YOUR NEW FICTIONAL CRUSH

This was so hard because the older I get the harder it is for my book boyfriends to win me over. That's why I talk about all the same ones over and over again. However, if I had to choose one it would be Audric from Furyborn. I don't know what it is about him, but I feel like he's very Gryffindor and he's actually good and perfectly combats Rielle's anger.

9 - NEW FAVOURITE CHARACTER

Rielle from Furyborn. I tried my best to not have any books repeating, but I honestly had to choose Rielle because although I know her future and what she does, I can't help but relate with her more than any of the other characters.

10 - A BOOK THAT MADE YOU CRY

It Ends With Us because this was such a heartwrenching book. This is one of those books you have to go in knowing nothing about. Don't read the reviews, don't look at the tags, don't read any comments, just go out and read it.

11 - A BOOK THAT MADE YOU HAPPY

Last Summer of the Garrett Girls, it was just such a short fun book about four sisters. I myself have a sister and I can say that I made a connection with it because it did remind me of my sister.

12 - YOUR FAVOURITE BOOK TO MOVIE ADAPTATION THAT YOU'VE SEEN THIS YEAR

Love, Simon because even though it wasn’t a perfect adaptation to the book it was still pretty fucking good and it meant so much to so many people so I could never say a bad thing about it.

13 - FAVOURITE BLOG POST YOU'VE PUBLISHED THIS YEAR

After perusing my blog posts I decided on a book tag that I created called The End book tag. I just had such a good time creating it and I was so proud of myself because I had never seen anything like it that I know of. The post itself didn't do as well as I had hoped but I had a fun time making it.

14 - THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOK YOU HAVE BOUGHT/RECEIVED THIS YEAR

(Credit)

The Cruel Prince because wow. If you take off the dust jacket there is the most beautiful imprint on the book.

15 - WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BOOKS THAT YOU NEED TO READ BY THE END OF THE YEAR?

Honestly, just look at question 4. Those are the books I for sure need to read this year. Plus It by Stephen King.

Also, if you were not already aware, I have a mid yeaar favorite giveaway happening on my blog! Anyone can enter I'll leave a link for you to check out here.

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