Friday, May 24, 2013

Off Sides + Off Limits by Sawyer Bennett {Mini Reviews}

Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Publication Date: February 21st 2013
Publisher: Big Dog Publishing
Pages: 137
Format: Kindle purchased from Amazon


I'm not sure what possessed me to do it. Maybe it was the impossible expectations I faced, maybe it was my own self-loathing. But I just knew I needed something different to happen. I needed someone, something, to derail me from my current path. Otherwise, I would become lost, a hollowed out shell of a man. So I did it. I approached her, then I pursued her, then I made her mine. And my life was saved.” Ryan Burnham is the privileged son of a U.S. Congressman and captain of his university’s hockey team. While he is on the verge of fulfilling his dreams to play in the NHL, his parents want him on a different course. One he is expected to accept for the sake of his family’s public image. Forced to abandon her music career after the heart breaking death of her parents, Danny Cross exists on the opposite side of the tracks from Ryan. She is struggling to make her own way, working two jobs, attending college part time and volunteering in a homeless shelter. She is on a mission to build her own success. With a chance meeting, their vastly different worlds collide, causing each to evaluate whether they are truly on the correct path to self-fulfillment and happiness. Can their relationship survive? Particularly when others are against them every step of the way. A lot can happen in just ten short days.




MY TAKE:
Every once in awhile a book comes along and buries itself deep into your bone marrow and becomes a part of you. Well Off Sides has done that with me. It was such a well written and beautiful book about a guy and a girl on two different sides of life. Ryan and Danny's chemistry was so electric even from their first meeting you could tell they would be an amazing couple. Ryan was probably my favorite part of the book. He was charming and sweet and just an amazing guy, especially when he was with Danny. They go through some struggles by being together with one of the biggest being Ryan's mother Celia. With Danny's purple hair and facial piercings his mother does everything she can to  keep them apart and nearly succeeds but Ryan being amazing, he nips that shit in the bud! That was the main thing I loved about Ryan's character. Even though he was heartbroken when his mother interfered he didn't do the typical guy thing and hook up with someone else to bury his pain. NO! He fought damn hard to keep Danny and ultimately stole every last bit of my heart at how amazing he was.

Danny was one of those strong female characters that gives me a serious boner! She was tough and determined and didn't take shit from anyone. During her very first scene she shows her character by standing up to a snobby bitch trying to make her look stupid. One of the things I admired about her tremendously was despite his mother and sister trying to intimidate her she stayed true to herself and didn't try to change to please them. I could relate to Danny's character more than most being that I am no stranger to hard times. It was so amazing to see her keep her head up even though she couldn't have her dream right away. These two characters have some great love scenes that were made so much more hot by their well delivered chemistry. The author didn't go balls to the wall with it but she didn't need to because everything was so natural in delivery.

Overall I totally fell in love with this story. It's a quick read but I think even if it was longer it would be read fast because it hooks you instantly and won't let you go. I love when books do that. Ryan and Danny are amazing, the cover is gorgeous and the story will leave you with warm fuzzies! Absolute MUST READ!!


Quotes:

~ I don't know what it is about this girl, but fuck, she's hot. And clearly smart as shit. Loc. 132

"I'm a twenty-one year old virgin who has been fairly athletic most of her life. I doubt I have much of a hymen for you to shred." Loc. 1311

"Listen carefully, Mother, because I mean this with every fiber of my being. I am choosing love. I am choosing someone who loves me unconditionally, no matter what. It's as simple as that." Loc. 1743

“We’re ending this farce tonight, Danny. I’m not leaving until we are back together and you admit you love me. In fact, I promise, before this evening ends I’ll make love to you.” Loc. 2111



Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Publication Date: April 14th 2013
Publisher: Big Dog Publishing
Pages: 224
Format: Kindle purchased from Amazon



“There is a vulnerability there, hovering just below the surface. And I want to pick at it until I expose it. Then I want to kiss it." Two years ago, Emily Burnham, had an epiphany about the shallowness of her life. And she made it her mission to become a different person…a better woman. Out from under the controlling thumb of her mother, Emily is tasting the real world for the first time. And she likes it. Nixon Caldwell has served his time in the Marine Corps, surviving two brutal tours in Afghanistan. He is back home, surrounded by what he likes best…isolation. It's certainly the best way to avoid confrontation of the consuming guilt that is weighing him down. When an accident brings Emily and Nix together, he soon learns he is not the master of his own fate. Struggling with his own pain, Nix tries to guard himself against Emily’s charms. He wants her in his bed, but he doesn’t want her in his heart. Having grabbed life by the horns, Emily wants it all. But is she willing to accept just the small part of himself that Nix is offering? Can she reach the part of his soul that he has deemed to be Off Limits? 



MY TAKE:
During Off Sides we met Emily Burnham, the young sister of Ryan who was just as nasty and stuck up as her mother and gave Danny a hard time for being different. During book 1 she sees the light and starts to change her ways which is where we catch up with her in Off Limits. She's trying to live her own life without making waves with her mother who wants her to become a Doctor or Lawyer. All Emily wants to do is become a sports journalist and hides her major from her parents. After interviewing one of her brothers team mates, Lincoln (Linc) she goes to leave but runs over his brother Nix. A hot as sin ex Marine with dark hair and even darker personality. She ruins his motorcycle in the accident and offers to pay him back but with her trust fund being suspended she offers to work for him instead. That only leads to them growing closer the more time they spend together and Emily soon starts to get under Nix' skin despite his best efforts.

I wasn't really thrilled to read Emily's book because she was such a snatch in Off Sides in how she treated Danny. It's hard to change my opinion of a character once they are established as a twat but Emily managed to make me love her a little bit in this one. She changed a lot in the few years that passed between books and has become a much more tolerable person. I love how she befriended the very people she avoided before her grand epiphany. Her roommate and best friend is an angry lesbian who always threatens to cut off guys' balls, which I can totally relate to and I'm sure my friends will agree. She became strong and independent and actually developed a backbone especially with her mother. 

Nix was the dark and mysteriously sexy wounded veteran I couldn't help but love from minute one. I have a soft spot for soldiers and seeing the things Nix has been through just endears our troops that much more to my heart. I enjoyed watching him slowly fall for Emily and also forgiving himself for something he couldn't control. He blames himself for not getting his friend to safety sooner after a grenade blew his legs off. I can't imagine what it's like to go through that but I feel like the author did a great job of taking us through the stages with Nix and getting into his head. He also suffered a traumatic brain injury during the blast that caused him some problems the first few years after. It was fun to see him fight his feelings for Emily because he doesn't even know he is falling. Being such a gruff, mean, hard ass most of the time since getting out of the Marines he didn't understand why he wanted her so bad. These two had some amazingly hot chemistry as well that lead to some steamy scenes that made me wish I wasn't reading it at work! Despite his obvious sex appeal Nix had a vulnerable side that tugged at my heartstrings and made me love him! 

This book introduces us to Lincoln or Linc, Nix' brother who gets his own book Off The Record, coming June 11th! I can't wait because I loved seeing his interactions with his brother in this one.

Off Limits was intense and more emotional than I expected with Nix struggling to cope after a traumatic ordeal. I loved how the author mended the strained relationships between Emily and her parents in this one. The relationship between Emily and Nix was well done and I loved how things wrapped up between them. I think this book has one of the best epilogues I have ever read. It was beautiful and heart warming that just added to the other wonderful tidbits throughout the story. The Off series has become one of my favorites that I can't recommend enough! These are MUST READS that will make you SWOON, cry, laugh and Read over and over again!


Quotes:
"Walk the other way, Shithead, or I'll sneak into your dorm room at night and cut your balls off." Loc. 181

~ He smirks at me and it makes me want to slap his face. No, kiss his face. Wait... definitely slap his face. Loc. 405


~ When her subtle jasmine perfume touches my nose, I think about her lying naked in a bed of flowers. This shit is driving me fucking crazy and it's got no place in my life. It's not who I am. Loc. 764


"Making personal connections is easy. Losing them is what's hard. It's easier to avoid." Loc. 1222

~ He is a terrible conversationalist in real life but he probably has the power to induce an orgasm just from his wicked thoughts translated into erotic conversation. Loc. 2333

"The difference is now... I love you more than the air I breathe and I feel so very empty without you in my life. So no matter how down and dirty we get... no matter how hard or fast we go... it will always be making love, baby." Loc. 3372



About The Author:
Sawyer Bennett is the pen name for a snarky southern woman and reformed trial lawyer who decided to finally start putting on paper all of the stories that were floating in her head. She is married to a mobster (well, a market researcher) and they have two big, furry dogs who hog the bed. Sawyer would like to report she doesn't have many weaknesses but can be bribed with a nominal amount of milk chocolate.

LINKS:



Don't forget to add Off The Record to your Goodreads TBR list!




5 comments:

  1. Okay, I didn't read you Off Limits review b/c I still need to read it. But...I love your review for Off Sides. Wasn't that story amazing?!
    Great review, babe.

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  2. Holy hell! If these are mini reviews, what do you do for full out reviews? These were so awesome Amanda!!! Love you!!! Highest compliment you paid me was about the epilogue because I wrote that literally on the day my hubby and I found out that the 2 years of IVF we were doing just wasn't going to work and carrying a baby wasn't in the cards for me. So you know how emotional that was, right? XOXOXO

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  3. I need to read Off Limits, so I skimmed, but I so loved Off Sides! Going to try to squeeze in Off Limits soon!

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  4. Love love love these books and CANNOT wait for Off the Record!! Great job Hootie!! xoxo

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  5. I have both of these on my pile and cannot wait to crack them open! Great mini reviews!

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