{Review} Try by Ella Frank

Try by Ella Frank
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.70 stars!

Try is Ella Frank's first foray into the m-m sub-genre. I've always loved Ella's trademark style of being able to write some serious steam, emotionally charged plots and character development. If you've read her Exquisite Series and Obsession, then you know what I'm talking about.

Now, onto the positives.

Try is one seriously steamy book. If it's steam that you want, then this book certainly delivers. This book is hot, hot, hot. This book will have you squirming in your seats. I kid you not.

Second, I like the dialogue and the banter between Logan and Tate. It's snarky, fun and yes, sexy. I especially love Cole and Logan banter. We didn't get to see that in Edible, where Logan's half-brother Cole is the main character, but we see quite a handful of that here. It made Logan more human and less of a jerk, although I have to say, I still can't figure him out yet.

So why not give this one a full 4 stars or 5?

Well, as much as it pains me to admit this but emotionally I wasn't connecting very much with either Logan or Tate. I like the the steamy moments in this book, but for me, it kind of lacks the emotional aspect that I always find in Ella's writing.

And while I did find the dialogue fun to read, I also had a hard time distinguishing Tate and Logan's voices. Sometimes, I read a series of banter between them and I had to read it again and see who's talking then, whether it's Tate or Logan. There were really moments where they started to sound alike and that really bugged me.

Final thoughts

This book is the first of three that will follow Logan and Tate as they explore the limits of their relationship. This would have had an even lower rating for me if not for the fact that towards the last part of the book, I did find that emotional spark between the two characters. I can only imagine where Ella will take Logan and Tate's story. And while this one did not shine for me across the board, I still have high hopes for the next book Take to take me to that place where I can actually emotionally connect with each of the characters.

Still, a very decent m-m debut for Ella Frank. Not that I'm not an expert of course but as a reader, that is my opinion. ;)

ARC is provided by the author in exchange for an honest review!

{Blog Tour} Review+Top 10+Dream Cast+Giveaway: Rock'n Tapestries by Shari Copell

Hello, my lovelies!

We've packed quite a lot of surprises for you on this stop. Aside from my review and character casting, you'll also get a Top 10 list of Asher's favorite/memorable rock songs. Plus, Shari is also revealing the cover for the Rock'n Tapestries' second novel entitled Wild Angel, and of course, a tour-wide giveaway.

Enjoy!

Title: Rock'n Tapestries

Series: A Rock'n Tpestries Novel, #1

Author: Shari Copell

Genre: Erotic Contemporary Romance

Release Date: September 23, 2013 

Tour Organized by: As the Pages Turn

Purchase Links:  Amazon | Amazon UK

Add on Goodreads

My Review

Book Blurb
“Asher Pratt had been a drug for me, and I wasn’t sure I wasn’t still addicted.”

Chelsea Whitaker works as a waitress at Tapestries, a trendy Pittsburgh bar. She’s doing her best to avoid Asher Pratt, the Pittsburgh rock legend who shattered her heart years ago.

When he takes a job at Tapestries just to be near her, Chelsea has some decisions to make.

She soon discovers that some things never change. It’s all she can do to keep a tight hold on her heart as Asher takes her for another wild ride.

As she struggles to gain some perspective on their relationship, she learns that he’s never needed her more. She must put the past aside for the sake of the future.

To classify Rock'n Tapestries as NA is too limiting in my opinion. Honestly, when I first got into this book, I thought I pretty much have an idea what's going to happen. You get bad boy rock star who hurt the one girl he can't live without, they break up and somehow find themselves thrown together by fate and then HEA. 

Well, that didn't quite happen in this book. Rest assured there is still HEA but you might need to set aside what you think the HEA might be and focus on the journey. This book is quite a journey.

Chelsea was a sympathetic character. She's funny but at times, her thinking frustrated me a bit. But what's great about her character was that she always listens to those around her.  And when thrown a curve ball, she always comes out stronger and smarter. 

Asher's character is straight out of every woman's fantasy of what a rock star should be. He's handsome, (of course), a bit of a manwhore, sensitive and hiding a huge secret. I can definitely understand Chelsea's misgivings about this guy. After all, he did break her heart in the worst way possible. Yup, he did one of those things that makes you want to throw your Kindle against the wall. It was that bad. 

Chelsea and Asher's second journey together wasn't any easier. This time, Chelsea was determined to guard her heart and Asher was determined to surrender his. And just when you thought you know how everything is going to end, the twist happened. A twist, by the way, that readers will either hate or love. As for me, it made sense in the grand scheme of things.  Of course, I would have preferred my own ending but I actually liked the ending on this one. 

4 Rockin' Stars!!

My Casting

Asher

Chelsea

Tage

Nicks

Top 10 song list of Asher's favorite songs. 

Some of these have sentimental value to Asher.  Some are just good guitar rock songs. Some are both. 

1.	I Won’t Hold You Back by Toto
2.	No Mistakes by Patty Smyth/Scandal
3.	Can’t Get Enough of Your Love by Bad Company
4.	Anything by VanHalen
5.	Talk to Ya Later by The Tubes
6.	Everybody Wants You by Billy Squier
7.	Long Gone by Bryan Adams
8.	Girl’s Got Rhythm by AC/ DC
9.	Fire Woman by The Cult
10.	Naughty Naughty by Danger Danger

Cover Reveal

 Author Bio:

Though I write contemporary romance under the name Shari Copell, my real name is Sherry Jesberger.  I write a historical fantasy/paranormal romance series under the name S.L. Jesberger.

I am an eleventh generation native of Pennsylvania.  My husband Gordon and I raised three lovely daughters, one of whom designs my book covers. Another daughter drew the map in the front cover of my historical fantasy series.  

I’ve always had stories swirling through my head. Crazy stuff, totally whack situations. I was a voracious reader as a child, choosing to escape into the world of books. I wrote stories when I was a teen, but quit as I grew up. (Keep in mind, there were no computers then. Writing a book or story consisted of a brand-new notebook and a ballpoint pen.) I found some of these early stories as I cleaned out my grandmother’s house after she passed. Unfortunately, I threw them away.

 I started writing again in 2012 after my husband lost his job. Aislin of Arianrhod was published in October of that year. I immediately began to work on the second book in the series, Winter’s Child. Sometime in the middle of writing Winter’s Child, I had the inexplicable urge to swear like sailor, use modern vernacular, and write steamy sex scenes. I was amused and tried to push it aside. The language in a historical fantasy is obviously much different from a contemporary romance, so I had to behave myself.

 

I finally just thought, fuck it. I’ll do it.  It was during that time that I started to write “Micah’s Island.” I simply needed to purge the wild story that had taken over my brain by then. It was so much fun to write.  What would happen if you met a man who had never seen a grown woman before? 

 

I chose the pen name Shari Copell because Micah’s Island was so very different from the Àlainnshire series. Copella was my grandmother’s maiden name—I just dropped the A.

For the most part, people seemed to like Micah, though he was a man of few words.  I got some nice (and not so nice) emails about it, mostly from people wanting a better ending. I promptly wrote them one.

I wasn’t sure I would ever write another contemporary romance until Rock’n Tapestries dropped into my head, nearly complete from beginning to end (though I did run some things past Tara Chevrestt, who edits for me. Her suggestions were invaluable.)  You just have to indulge your muse when that happens, as it doesn’t happen often. 

Though the names and situations have been changed to protect the not-so-innocent, some of the things in Rock’n Tapestries were things that actually happened to me.  My husband was wearing a bass guitar the first time I ever laid eyes on him. As Chelsea says of Tage, “ I think I might’ve had to scoop my jaw off the floor.”  He’s the skinny dude in the gray tank top and orange guitar on the far right in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lXGyaHNWRI

I hope you’ve enjoyed Rock’n Tapestries. I’m currently having a blast working on a book about Nicks Sorenson, Asher’s daughter. I love this girl! It should be out sometime in 2014.

In the meantime, rock on!

Author Contact Info: Facebook | Goodreads | Email

Tour wide giveaway:

Shari is offering up (3) signed copies & (3) eBook copies of Rock'n Tapestries up for grabs. Giveaway ends at 11:59 PM CST 11/25/2013

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