Thirsty for a Good Read

I found this online and love it. Whoever created it is super talented, and I hope they wouldn't mind me reposting. It is just to perfect not to share!

First off, I received my copy of this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review via the "Don't Buy My Love" event hosted by the M/M Romance Group on Goodreads.

A lone man with a past that left deep scars on his mind and his body gets a fresh start on an island where he isn't in danger for being gay. He still seems to just drift through his existence, watching as the other islanders find relationships with one another, until one day he is asked to see to some flotsam that washes ashore.
Francis rescues the merman mixed up in the flotsam whom he comes to affectionately call Wick.
Francis's past was a little dark, though it didn't affect his daily life save for certain triggers. Wick's side of the story is mostly a mystery, but the way he is presented by Piper Vaughn is nothing short of delightful. From the speech barrier to the shift in his emotions, the author does a wonderful job of bringing these two together.
Francis goes to great lengths to keep Wick a secret from the rest of the islanders, going so far as to ask someone to fill in for him at work so he can "attend urgent matters" *cough* stay home and ogle the merman in his tub all day *cough*
After returning Wick to the sea, Francis becomes rather depressed. He works himself to exhaustion trying to drive away the feeling of loneliness he is left with. A twist here, a turn there, and voila.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Normally I either don't connect with short stories, or if I do they leave me unsatisfied and wanting more. I must say that while this was not a lengthy read, I was certainly satisfied by it. I want more, yes; but I want more precisely because it was so satisfying. I'm hoping by the way it is listed on GR that it is slated to be part of a series centered on Isla Segrario.
My favorite part of this book was the first actual sexual encounter between Francis and Wick. I certainly applaud Piper Vaughn for not shying away from the details and turning out a steamy encounter.
I don't have a least favorite part of this book, though I admit that some parts in the beginning were a little confusing to me.
There is nothing I feel that this book lacks. (I would love to see a sequel from Wick's POV someday though ;) )

 OMG!! How come strangers know so much about me?!

via HuffPost:

1. Finding a comfortable reading position is a never-ending quest. Chair or bed? Side or back? In a box? With a fox?

2. On airplanes, you hesitantly flick on the overhead light while everyone else is napping.

3. Paper cuts may look like minor injuries, but the pain can be excruciating.

4. Walking and reading at the same time requires hand-eye coordination only professional athletes have been endowed with.

5. What on earth are you supposed to do with the jacket on a hardcover while you're reading it? Keep it on and risk damaging it? Take it off and store it in a weird nook, never to find it again?

6. Deciding what to read is a choice that presents you with an embarrassment of riches.

7. The typeface and page length of a book can seriously impact your reading experience, sometimes for the worse (sans-serif font is a huge no-no).

8. A book can be composed of the worst drivel you've ever laid eyes on, you're still afflicted with major guilt when you banish it to the "I Will Never Ever Ever Finish This. Like, Ever." shelf.

9. You lament time that you've wasted in the past; all of those hours scouring celebrity Twitters could have been put towards finally reading Moby Dick!

10. Some people count down the minutes until their lunch hour; you count down the minutes until Jeffery Eugenides or Donna Tartt releases their next book (roughly 5 million for Tartt, but who's counting?!)

11. Finishing a book you loved is like saying goodbye to a good friend. You've been through so much together! And while you may see each other again, it won't be quite the same.

12. Forget finding roommates; the most stressful thing about moving is figuring out a way to transport boxes upon boxes of heavy books.

13. You're constantly rethinking your bookshelf strategy. Should you color-coordinate, or take a more practical approach, such as publication date or alphabetization? Or, if you're feeling ambitious, should you tackle the autobiographical bookshelf, à la Rob Gordon from High Fidelity?

14. Your mood is directly impacted by the mood of the book that you're reading; your friends have learned to avoid you during Dostoyevsky months or Bret Easton Ellis weeks.

15. You take found books home like abandoned puppies, chirping, "Can we keep it?!" That'd be well and good if it didn't happen once a day.

16. One does not simply walk by a bookstore. One must poke around, at the very least, and one usually ends up filling one's tote bag with more books than one can carry.

17. "I don't read" is a relationship death knell, akin to "I loathe my mother" or "I enjoy upsetting kittens."

18. You may or may not own two (or three or four) copies of a beloved book. You can't help it, the redesigned covers are irresistible!

19. Laundry day and other important obligations get completely overlooked when you're in the middle of a great, un-put-downable book. "Same shirt Saturday"? Sorry you're not sorry. 

First off, I won my copy of this book via a giveaway hosted at Booklikes.

Oh, what a world of good this book would have done for me over a year ago! Not just for its advice, but for it humor value. If you can't laugh at some of the mistakes you have made, this book will help you learn to! Dating (and sex) are not a mathematical formula. A+B does NOT always = C. Navigate the waters ( and laugh along the way) with this wonderful little gem of a how-to.

First off, I won my copy of this book via a giveaway hosted at Booklikes.

I have a very hard time believing the words at the very end of this book that claim the author graduated with a BA in English in addition to receiving teaching credentials on top of that. This is in serious need of an editor. Mistakes I can overlook to a point, formatting is crucial for a smooth reading experience, but constant choppy sentences are not acceptable. I can understand and appreciate that particular style when used to convey the tension in a particularly important action scene; but throughout the whole book, when the characters are doing something as mundane as...eating? No.
I had entered the giveaway for this hoping it would redeem the image of vampires in literature, and I could recommend it to all my friends who agree that vampire's DON'T sparkle. (Yes, I read the series. No, I'm not a "twi-hard." Unfortunately for me, I have a character trait that demands I finish what I start.) This really didn't do that.

[spoiler]The "human" rebels defeat vampires by clawing their eyes out, breaking their necks (with their bare hands), and basically beating the ever-living stuffing out of them. NOT REDEEMING IN THE LEAST![/spoiler]

The above being said, I really enjoyed the artwork. The premise is good, but I did see the plot-twist coming from a mile away.

Also, I never trust a book that doesn't have at least one bad review. It's a red-flag that people were probably hand-picked to review it. 

First off, I won an ebook version of this via a giveaway hosted at Booklikes.

That's what the build-up is in this first installment of the Covington Witches. It starts out with the mundane details of Imara's day-to-day life of her business; and by the end of the book, the mundane beginning is like a dream. Action-packed it is not (at least not yet maybe) but it is certainly interesting. Have you ever felt like you don't really click or connect with your family? I think that's possibly how Imara feels at times; like the oddball out. My hands are itching to get ahold of the next book...

First off, I received my copy of this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review via the "Don't Buy My Love" event hosted by the M/M Romance Group on Goodreads.

A young man has gone from rags to riches but still struggles with the scars of his past. He deals with his attraction to a man he thinks he can't have, the development of an ability to manipulate water, and a group of power hungry people who want him in their possession.
Skylar Foxx and Justice Salvatore dance around their mutual attraction while trying to figure out who is after Skylar and why.
At first, I thought Skylar's character was a little flat; but I attributed this to my not having read the Assassin/Shifter series that precedes this one.
Various problems crop up throughout the storyline, providing a consistent level of tension that keeps the reader engaged. I enjoy that some loose ends are left to be continued in the books that will follow.

I'm beginning to notice a pattern in my taste for favorite characters. They are rarely one of the main characters. More often than not, I end up favoring one or two of the supporting characters. In this book, my favorite characters are Killian and Stone (I'm sooooooo looking forward to THAT story!).

I was able to relate to a part here or there, but I've never experienced first-hand anything that Skylar has dealt with. Still, it was very real. The mental/emotional scars and his reasoning for his actions make perfect sense.
At first I had a bit of a hard time getting into this work, but about a third of the way in I started to grasp everything a little better and was drawn in. I think it would have been easier if I had read the series (Assassin/Shifter) that precedes this one first.

My favorite part of this work is the interactions between ALL of the characters. Normally, I dislike works in which the majority of the characters are gay/lesbian. It's unrealistic. In this however, it works very well. I find it rather believable, and it does not come across as overdone.
If I had to choose a least favorite part, it would be the beginning. To me, it was very abrupt. It's like jumping into water that you thought was only a few feet deep only to find that it's more like twenty. Again, I think the remedy to this would be reading the Assassin/Shifter series BEFORE reading this book.
I really enjoyed this book and I think I'm going to have to read the Assassin/Shifter series before I read any of the books that come after Justice for Skylar.
This will definitely be one I'll read again in the future.

Ah, how apt. Although I don't get quite as upset as I used to. Also depends on WHO is doing the interrupting and WHY...

I just wanna introduce myself if anyone's interested in knowing a little about me. My name is Vivien. I'm a 22 year old single mom who loves to read. Of course my interests changed as I grew older, but I am now rediscovering children's books. I want my son to grow up knowing the classics, but it's good to look for new works too.

I'm a Goodreads refugee, although I haven't jumped ship just yet. Since I discovered Goodreads, I got in the habit of reviewing every single book I read. Someday I might go back and write reviews for all the ones I read in the past, but I don't know if I really will because I'm guessing that it numbers in the thousands if I were count the ones I read from the age of 3 onward.

Contact me anytime. I love to talk about books!