Genre: New Adult
Blog tour stop
Book Links: Amazon/ Barnes and Noble
Book Review
This is my first New Adult read from Nyrae; previously I read Measuring Up, one of her young adult books which I loved. When the opportunity to read and review this book came up I jumped on it and I am glad I did. I was hesitant to read this book because I had not read any previous books in (The Games Series series), but I am glad I did – this book was fabulous!
This book is written in two POV’s: Delaney and Adrian. The characters in the book all – and I mean all – have gone through a tragic experience. Adrian tries to numb himself of his problems with drinking and girls, and as you are reading you start to get invested with these characters. I can’t give away the plot of the book, so I will say that Adrian’s tragic story builds and builds as you read. I was continually saying to myself “What happened?”. Adrian has a very self-deprecating attitude about himself. Then there is Delaney; you’re not quite sure why she is in the book until Adrian and Delaney meet and then you put two and two together.
What I loved about this book was that there is a twist when you least expect it. Here is my conversation with the author; I had to reach out because the twist had me in disbelief.
By the time you’ve read through 81% of the book you are invested in the characters – you feel you know the flow of the book and how it’s going to turn out, but I am here to tell you that YOU HAVE NO IDEA… Even the ending is not what I expected. The author is nice enough to finish the tale, but I know for me, it was not the ending I had in my head. It was a brilliant change of events and the way she snuck that punch in there at the 81% mark was genius. This has love, romance, action, and has your heart racing. Yes, this is a must read for New Adult lovers. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Check out this book insert teaser. 😀
Exclusive Book insert:
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When I see my sister, Angel, walk over to Ash’s grave I don’t get out of the car. When some guy walks up and grabs her hand, I don’t know who he is and yet, I don’t bother finding out. They hug and I don’t walk over and do the same thing to her. It’s not our thing to stand around having some group, mourning session over the two year-old boy who died too soon.
Nope. This is real life. Not like all the stupid fucking books I read or the movies people watch or the reality shows that couldn’t be farther away from reality.
Without moving an inch, I watch her. Watch as she sets flowers on Ashton’s grave. As the guy pulls her into a hug. As they kneel on the ground, probably talking to him in a way I’ll never have the balls to do.
The guy says something to her and then gets up and walks away. I duck further down in my seat, but no one is paying attention to me. He heads back to a little car and waits.
Angel’s hands go to her face and I know she’s crying in them. Know she’s mourning the loss of Ash, the boy she loved so much. The boy she took care of better than any mom could. I know she sent the guy away because she’s like me and needs to handle shit on her own. Only unlike me, she’ll never run.
She cries out there for probably thirty minutes. The whole time my chest is tight. Aching. It’s hard to breathe and I want to turn away, but I don’t. I deserve to feel this way and deserve to see this.
A fist squeezes tighter and tighter around my heart. My face is wet, but I don’t bother to wipe away the tears, either. Real men don’t fucking cry. That’s what dad always said before he hit me in a series of body shots, until I couldn’t stop myself from doing just what he said I shouldn’t do.
Then he’d beat me harder for being weak.
Angel’s shoulders are shaking. I can tell from this far away.
I’m not an idiot. Never have been. I know it wouldn’t make me weak to walk over there and hug her. To hold her and tell her it’ll be okay, but I still won’t do it. What right do I have to try and console her, when I’m the one who destroyed everything? When I’m the one who let Ash die?
Nope. This is real life. Not like all the stupid fucking books I read or the movies people watch or the reality shows that couldn’t be farther away from reality.
Without moving an inch, I watch her. Watch as she sets flowers on Ashton’s grave. As the guy pulls her into a hug. As they kneel on the ground, probably talking to him in a way I’ll never have the balls to do.
The guy says something to her and then gets up and walks away. I duck further down in my seat, but no one is paying attention to me. He heads back to a little car and waits.
Angel’s hands go to her face and I know she’s crying in them. Know she’s mourning the loss of Ash, the boy she loved so much. The boy she took care of better than any mom could. I know she sent the guy away because she’s like me and needs to handle shit on her own. Only unlike me, she’ll never run.
She cries out there for probably thirty minutes. The whole time my chest is tight. Aching. It’s hard to breathe and I want to turn away, but I don’t. I deserve to feel this way and deserve to see this.
A fist squeezes tighter and tighter around my heart. My face is wet, but I don’t bother to wipe away the tears, either. Real men don’t fucking cry. That’s what dad always said before he hit me in a series of body shots, until I couldn’t stop myself from doing just what he said I shouldn’t do.
Then he’d beat me harder for being weak.
Angel’s shoulders are shaking. I can tell from this far away.
I’m not an idiot. Never have been. I know it wouldn’t make me weak to walk over there and hug her. To hold her and tell her it’ll be okay, but I still won’t do it. What right do I have to try and console her, when I’m the one who destroyed everything? When I’m the one who let Ash die?
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So I sit here and watch her, just so I’ll never forget the pain I caused.
You ready to read this book now? Well here are the book links to the series in order.
1. Charade
2. Facade
3. Masquerade (pre-order link) set to release January 7th 2014
You can win!
1 WINNER: $25 gift card to the e-retailer of your choice, plus a print copy of FAÇADE
5 WINNER: Forever New Adult Prize pack including print copies of: FAÇADE, THE COINCIDENCE OF CALLIE & KAYKEN (Jessica Sorensen), THE EDGE OF NEVER (J.A Redmerski), and ELITE (Rachel Van Dyken).
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About the Author:
Writing has always been Nyrae Dawn’s passion. Nyrae gravitates toward character-driven stories. She loves going on emotional journeys with characters whether it be reading or writing. And yes, she’s a total romantic at heart and proud.Nyrae resides in sunny Southern California with her husband (who still makes her swoon) and her two awesome kids.When she’s not with her family, you can be pretty sure you’ll find her with a book in her hand or her laptop and an open document in front of her. Nyrae also writes adult romance under the name Kelley Vitollo.
