August 25, 2015

***Series Blog Tour & Review***
Caged by Shay Savage

 


Liam & Tria’s gritty love story concludes in RELEASED!
 AVAILABLE NOW
Released (Book Three) Caged Series


BLURB
Oblivion is a sweet, sweet place.
No pain. No disturbing thoughts of the past. No guilt from my recent actions.
Deep down, there is still a part of me that knows how screwed up I am. I don’t see a way out, not now. Tria’s gone, and the possibility of her forgiving me in my current state is exactly zero. I know I have to pull myself together, accept my responsibilities, and try to make amends, but I have no idea where to start.
No job. No apartment. I’m living on the streets with the other junkies. As little as I had to offer Tria before, I have nothing to give her now. The only way out is to come clean and tell Tria the truth about my past, but the idea of reliving the memories is so painful, I can’t think about it long enough to figure out a solution.
I’ve hit rock bottom, and I don’t even know which way is up any more.
 
RELEASED EXCERPT
I watched Yolanda walk out of the cage.  Apparently, I kept looking in her direction too long.  I took a blow to the head before I realized the fight had started.
I stumbled back, shook my head, and regained my footing.  I raised my fists up in front of my face, and danced lightly on my toes, waiting for his next move.  We circled slowly, jabbing but not finding our marks.  My head swam again.
I needed to put an end to this.  I needed to get it over with so I could take my winnings and get more smack.  I had come down too hard and too fast.  I had to get straight again.
I rushed him, striking out with my right and then my left.  I took an elbow to the face, and felt my neck snap back.
The next thing I knew, I was on my back, and the guy was straddling my chest.  I registered my head being thrown from side to side with punches, but I couldn’t focus enough to get him off me.  I jabbed at his sides, but it was ineffective.
With my head spinning, I slammed my hand against the ground three times.
“Woo hoo!”  The challenger jumped off of me and started running around the small cage.
I could hear cheers, boos, and people screaming at me, but I couldn’t comprehend the words.  I rolled over and pushed myself up before stumbling out of the cage.
“Jesus, Liam!”  Back in the locker room, Yolanda fussed around the cut over my eye and my bloody lip as I tried to push her hands away and get my jeans back on.  “What the hell is wrong with you tonight?”
“Just forget it!” I yelled.  “I need to get going.”
“Oh yeah?  Why’s that?  You got nothing waiting for you at home.”
I pulled my shoulders close together and bit down on the pad of my thumb.  I didn’t remember telling Yolanda about Tria leaving, but apparently I had.  I was afraid to open my mouth now.  I tensed every muscle to keep myself from trembling.  If Yolanda noticed, she’d figure out why.
If she figured it out, she’d stop me.
Is that such a bad thing?
Yes, most definitely.
I couldn’t risk it.  I couldn’t have Yolanda knowing what I was doing and dragging me somewhere to clean up.  She would take back the cash she’d just given me, and I’d be royally fucked.  I couldn’t let that happen.
“I gotta go,” I said again.  I shouldered past her and out the door, ignoring her calls after me.  I didn’t stop at the bar or acknowledge the fans around me as I left.
I took the cash I’d earned to Max and traded it for all the heroin I could get.  I returned to my apartment and banged up.
Bliss.
Everything was perfect.
**ADDITIONAL EXCERPTS FROM
BOOK ONE & TWO ARE LOCATED HERE**
 My Review

This may be the end of the Caged Trilogy but Caged-Released is my favorite book of them all! A fantastic end to a series that is so well written and researched that one can’t help but wonder if the circumstances have been based off of personal life situations. Whatever the case is, Shay Savage has solidified her spot in producing one of the rawest, thought provoking, darkest, unapologetic love stories that isn’t just about the love between one man and one girl.

It’s a love story about the ramifications a family must endure when the actions of words hurt more than any physical punch can produce. A love story of when the most horrific circumstance happens that one can’t possibly conjure it up and yet I read it. Caged-Released is a story of a man who uses his fists to break away from the PTSD he doesn’t realize he has. Words written that will take every reader down an ally into a drug binge so cruel that it’s sure to hurt you while reading. There are so many deep and dark things that happen in this book that I really questioned if I was ever going to see any light or any redemption at the end of the page. I did, however, the roller coaster ride of emotions I had to endure to get there was exhausting, but in a good way. In the way that I love! The feels in this book are on every spectrum that at times you can be in the darkest corner but the most sarcastic one liner would pop up and I would be laughing out loud.

Wow. Just sitting here thinking back on the journey I have been on in this trilogy and especially in this book I come to wonder how these three books are the very first time I have read Shay Savage! Her writing style is quite descriptive and the words just jump off the page. There is so much going on in the plot that it feels like you’ve been reading for days, and not in the way some books are when the story just drags and you’re poking your eyes out to just finish it. Released keeps you on your toes while guiding you right along making you fight your own battles of not falling for the bad guy. Who really isn’t bad at all, but damaged, and how the love for a woman can help break him free. The Caged Series is nothing short of Brilliance and one that should be on everyone’s shelf.

***Blogger note- I was given an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest experience.


 Series Reading Order
 
Takedown (Book One) Caged Series
 Trapped (Book Two) Caged Series
 Released (Book Three) Caged Series

About the Author:
Shay Savage lives in Cincinnati, Ohio with her family and a variety of household pets. She is an accomplished public speaker, and holds the rank of Distinguished Toastmaster from Toastmasters International. When not writing, she enjoys science fiction movies, masquerading as a zombie, is a HUGE Star Wars fan, and member of the 501st Legion of Stormtroopers. When the geek fun runs out, she also loves soccer in any and all forms - especially the Columbus Crew, Arsenal and Bayern Munich - and anxiously awaits the 2014 World Cup. Savage holds a degree in psychology, and she brings a lot of that knowledge into the characters within her stories.

Stalk Shay Here: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY
Signed Set of the Caged Series

*^* RELEASE BLITZ*^*CRUSHING MISERY BY KINSEY TAYLOR



Title: Crushing Misery
Author: Kinsey Taylor
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: August 25th, 2015


goodreads

Synopsis:
Have you ever lost the will to fight?
Kennedy Anderson has continually struggled with the crummy hand life has dealt her. A failed, abusive marriage has left her worn, yet relieved that the past is finally locked away. Unfortunately, the past has a way of repeating itself. Once again faced with tragedy and despair, Kennedy’s anguish is multiplied by the fact that she doesn’t suffer alone; she now has a two-year-old daughter, Ashlynn.
Love has only served to complicate Corbin Nash’s life.
He’s focused, hardworking, and dedicated to regaining his middleweight title until the unlikely duo of Kennedy and Ashlynn enter his life. While trying to help her fight her demons, Corbin finds his own resurfacing, steadily revealing the secrets he’s worked so hard to keep buried the last eighteen years.
Two beaten and battered souls, desperate to break free of the misery...
Will they cower to their plagued pasts, or will they fight through the despair and finally find the happiness that has evaded them their entire lives?
Buy Links:




Excerpt:
“Corbee!” The little blonde beauty pokes me in my side, bringing me out of my daydream.
“You want to come play with me?”
Sitting up, I reach over and bring her close to my face. I tickle her, and she squeals and giggles. It’s the best fucking sound my ears have ever heard.
“Sure, Ash. Just let me go grab a shirt, and I will come play outside with you and your mom.”
“Yay!!” She squeals jumping up and down next to me. “Huwwy up, Corbee, let go!!”
I grab a shirt off my bed and throw it on over my head. I grab the bubbles I bought just the other day, but the weather hasn’t been nice enough for it until today. I walk outside and watch the girls lying in the grass just outside the sliding glass door. I open the bubbles as I walk, spilling some on the way, trying to be quiet, so I can blow bubbles over them as they lie there looking up into the sky.
“That one looks like a kitty cat, Mommy,”
Ashlynn says while pointing at the clouds in the sky.
“It sure does, baby,” Kennedy says.
I take the little wand, pull it out and blow. Bubbles fly everywhere over them. Ashlynn starts giggling with excitement. Kennedy looks over her head in my direction and smiles.
“Good touch there, playboy!” Kennedy says.
I laugh. “Thanks, I thought she’d like bubbles.”
“You thought right,” Kennedy says.
About the Author:
Author Kinsey Taylor lives in the beautiful state of Washington. You'll find her running after her three crazy minions, two food-loving dogs, and a moody cat who believes he's the King of their castle. Her inspiration for her books comes from deep in her heart, inspired by her soul mate and husbands adoring support. The everlasting romantic, Kinsey's writing is sure to give twists, turns, and plenty of drama that will leave you breathless.

Follow Her Here:
Website, Author Page, Friend Page, Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest
 
GIVEAWAY:


Title: Palm South University: Episode One
Author: Kandi Steiner
Release Date: Aug 25, 2015
Find on Goodreads





Drama. Lies. Sex.

Welcome to Palm South University.

The weather isn’t the only thing heating up in South Florida. At a school where fraternities and sororities don’t exactly play by the rules, relationships are bound to be tested. Parties and sex are definitely key ingredients in the Palm South recipe, but what happens when family issues, secret lives, and unrequited love get tossed in the mix?

Follow Cassie, Bear, Jess, Skyler, Erin, Ashlei, and Adam as they tackle college at a small, private beach town university. Written in television drama form, each episode of this serial will pull you deeper and deeper into the world of PSU.

Where the sun is hot and the clothes are scarce, anything can happen.









After I finish my first drink and order another, I wander up to the group of guys at the pool table. We play for a little over an hour, drawing an even larger crowd because – clearly – we’re the most fun this joint has seen in a while. I’m cozied up and working on one of the hottest guys in the group when he informs me he has a fiancé.
Wow.
Buzz Killington, ladies and gentlemen.
I hang out with the group a little longer, hoping to move on to a new prospect, but they all head out before I have a chance to seal the deal with any of Mr. I’m-Engaged-But-You-Don’t-Need-To-Know-That-Until-It’s-Clear-You-Expect-To-Sleep-With-Me’s friends. Sighing, I take my place in the same barstool as before and Jarrett slides a fifth drink my way.
I hold up my hands. “I should probably say no this time. It’s almost closing time and I need to drive.”
“Not necessarily,” he offers. I eye him curiously and the corner of his mouth pulls up mischievously. He finishes wiping down a glass and hangs it above his head before leaning across the bar, his minty breath tickling my drunken senses. “You’ve been trying all night to get with that douchebag when I could have told you from the beginning that he wasn’t available. And now, you’re left with an ache between your legs that you don’t want to take care of on your own. So yes, you could drive home, get up and go to work tomorrow and just try again another night. Or,” he pauses, licking his bottom lip and dragging his teeth across the top as his eyes fall to my mouth. “You could give me your keys, jump in my truck, and let me take you back to my place so I can cure you of your current situation.”
Oh hell to the fucking yes.



So much fun! Palm South reads like a series you'd find yourself watching on your favorite t.v. channel, snuggled up in some comfy pj's. Complete chic lit comedy and some sexy sexy, Kandi once again brings us into the lives of the Sorority and Fraternity students of Florida's Palm South University. If you've read Kandi's debut novel, Black Number Four {WHICH I LOVED} you will then recognize the characters and for me, it's great to be back with the gang again and I'm super excited to see what unfolds in the future episodes. 

Episode 1 is really an introduction to who is whom and how the dynamics between them are formed. Flawless, colorful writing with just enough sass and attitude to not be a an overdone NA book. I love Kandi's style of writing and her knack to keep me engaged the entire time when reading. 


Stay tuned in to the blog every Tuesday to stay up to date on all things Palm South. The schedule is below:

Episode Release Dates:

Episode One - August 25th
Episode Two - September 1st
Episode Three - September 8th
Episode Four - September 15th
Episode Five - September 22nd
Episode Six - Finale - September 29th

This serial will be exclusive to Kindle and will be available on Kindle Unlimited.




Kandi Steiner is a Creative Writing and Advertising/Public Relations graduate from the University of Central Florida living in Tampa with her husband. Kandi works full time as a social media specialist, but also works part time as a Zumba fitness instructor and blackjack dealer.

Kandi started writing back in the 4th grade after reading the first Harry Potter installment. In 6th grade, she wrote and edited her own newspaper and distributed to her classmates. Eventually, the principal caught on and the newspaper was quickly halted, though Kandi tried fighting for her “freedom of press.” She took particular interest in writing romance after college, as she has always been a die hard hopeless romantic (like most girls brought up on Disney movies).

When Kandi isn’t working or writing, you can find her reading books of all kinds, talking with her extremely vocal cat, and spending time with her friends and family. She enjoys beach days, movie marathons, live music, craft beer and sweet wine – not necessarily in that order.
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