Tag: college

The Risk (Briar U, #2) by Elle Kennedy

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Everyone says I’m a bad girl. They’re only partly right—I don’t let fear rule me, and I certainly don’t care what people think. But I draw the line at sleeping with the enemy. As the daughter of Briar’s head hockey coach, I’d be vilified if I hooked up with a player from a rival team.

And that’s who Jake Connelly is. Harvard’s star forward is arrogant, annoying, and too attractive for his own good. But fate is cruel—I require his help to secure a much-coveted internship, and the sexy jerk isn’t making it easy for me.

I need Connelly to be my fake boyfriend.

For every fake date…he wants a real one.

Which means this bad girl is in big trouble. Nothing good can come from sneaking around with Jake Connelly. My father would kill me, my friends will revolt, and my post-college career is on the line. But while it’s getting harder and harder to resist Jake’s oozing sex appeal and cocky grin, I refuse to fall for him.

That’s the one risk I’m not willing to take.

Book: The Risk (Briar U, #2) by Elle Kennedy
Published: February 18, 2019
Pages: 432
Genres: Romance, Athlete, College, New Adult
Format: Kindle
Date Read: March 14, 2023
Rating: 4.5 Potatoes 🥔🥔🥔🥔

I read this book after reading The Dare (the 4th book in the series) and I enjoyed it even more than The Dare!

I loved Jake and Brenna both, which isn’t always the case. Most times I care for either the hero or Heroine more than the other but not with our Jake and Brenna! I loved that both characters were so strong and true blue. They didn’t pretend to be anyone else, they knew who they were at heart and that’s how they acted with the other one.

I loved reading the build up of their relationship and how it wasn’t this insta love where they were professing their feelings 30% into the book. Their relationship progressed at a normal pace and we got to see them slowly fall in love over time.

I loved how Jake was truly such a good guy at heart and wasn’t afraid to be in a relationship once he realized he wanted one. And I absolutely loved that Brenna wasn’t afraid to be with Jake, even though he played for her teams rival. My only wish is that we would have gotten to see where their relationship takes them in a few years but the author can still release a novella taking place after the book.

I enjoyed the Off Campus series a lot and enjoying this series as well!

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The Dare (Briar U #4) by Elle Kennedy

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College was supposed to be my chance to get over my ugly-duckling complex and spread my wings. Instead, I wound up in a sorority full of mean girls. I already have a hard time fitting in, so when my Kappa Chi sisters issue the challenge, I can’t say no.

The dare: seduce the hottest new hockey player in the junior class.

Conor Edwards is a regular at Greek Row parties…and in Greek Row sorority beds. He’s the one you fall for before you learn that guys like him don’t give girls like me a second glance. Except Mr. Popular throws me for a loop—rather than laughing in my face, he does me a solid by letting me take him upstairs to pretend we’re getting busy.

Even crazier, now he wants to keep pretending. Turns out Conor loves games, and he thinks it’s fun to pull the wool over my frenemies’ eyes.

But resisting his easy charm and surfer-boy hotness is darn near impossible. Though I’m realizing there’s much more to Conor’s story than his fan club can see.

And the longer this silly ruse goes on, the greater the danger of it all blowing up in my face.

Book: The Dare (Briar U #4) by Elle Kennedy
Published: June 16, 2020
Pages: 354
Genres: Romance, Athlete, New Adult, College, Curvy Heroine
Format: Kindle
Date Read: March 13, 2023
Rating: 3.5 Potatoes 🥔🥔🥔

When I finished this book I was leaning more towards a 3 rating but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the book and how much I truly enjoyed Conor’s character so for him alone its getting bumped up to a 3.5.

I’m not sure whether Conor already had me here…

Because whoever is torturing this poor girl is certainly watching us right now and they can eat shit. “Lead the way, babe.”

Or here…

“Taylor Marsh, will you do me the incredible honor of updating your relationship status and becoming my fake girlfriend?”

But either way – I love him, I love him, I love him! He is not perfect, he doesn’t always say or do the right thing but he really does care about Taylor and he tries, he tries so hard. I loved how he tried to be the best fake boyfriend for Taylor and then starting falling for her and found himself missing her like a true boyfriend should.

The reason this book is not getting bumped up to a 4 is because of Taylor, plain and simple. I understand we all have body image issues and you can’t tell someone how to feel about themselves but her issues were just over the top. Many males in the book hit on her and checked her out and from the description she was curvy but not fat. Again, you can’t tell someone how to feel but her insecurities drove me nuts! She was doing better with her issues at one point and then it was just like nope, back to square one!

I loved the beginning of the book, it started out great, the middle was good but I didn’t like the chapters leading up to the end. The final hurdle the couple had to go through didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me and felt unnecessary. I know these are college kids and we aren’t always rational at that age but I found myself very confused and wondering what the heck just happened in the book. And then boom, a rushed ending and suddenly everything is okay. I also feel like the epilogue didn’t give us a true glimpse of their future. I need to know that they made it as a couple because with the way things went at the end, even though they worked things out, I still feel like so much was uncertain.

I feel like if the ending gone differently and not been as rushed, and we had an epilogue that was more in the future and gave us more certainty on this couples future this could potentially gotten a 4 rating.

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I Dare You by Ilsa Madden-Mills

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Badass Athlete: I dare you to…
Delaney Shaw: Who is this?

The late night text is random, but “Badass Athlete” sure seems to know who she is…

Delaney Shaw.
Good girl.
Lover of fluffy kitties and Star Wars.
Curious.

His dare? Spend one night in his bed—a night he promises will be unforgettable—and she can solve the mystery of who he is.

She knows she shouldn’t, but what else is she going to do with her boring Valentine’s Day? One sexy hook-up later, her mind is blown and the secret’s out.

Maverick Monroe.
Bad boy.
The most talented football player in the country.
Just ask him.

Too bad for him Delaney’s sworn off dating athletes forever after her last heartbreak.

But Maverick wants more than one night and refuses to give up on winning Delaney’s heart. She isn’t one to be fazed by a set of broad shoulders.

Will the bad boy land the nerd girl or will the secrets they keep from each other separate them forever?

Book: I Dare You by Ilsa Madden-Mills
Published: April 29, 2018
Pages: 254
Genres: Romance College, Athlete
Format: Kindle
Date Read: February 6, 2023
Rating: 3.5 Potatoes 🥔🥔🥔🥔

I read this book in one sitting! It was short, sweet and predictable but I still enjoyed it so much!

I loved the character of Maverick, he was such an all around GOOD guy. And Delaney? What a sweetheart! These two were so well matched and had amazing chemistry. I loved them! I don’t really have much to say about this book – it was a good book, I wish it was longer, but still an enjoyable read!

I can’t wait to check out some of the other books in the series!

Only for You (Unforgettable You #1) by Beverley Kendall

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College freshman Olivia Montgomery is thrilled at the chance to start over, escape the rumors that plagued her in high school. And she can finally put her juvenile crush, Zachary Pearson, where he belongs–in her past. Then her unrequited love strolls into her French class, shattering Olivia’s newfound peace, and the feelings she’d thought buried for good come rushing back. Now she can’t shake her unwanted attraction to the one guy who can twist her stomach into knots with just a smile…but has never given her the time of day.

Zach’s good looks may have always gotten him his pick of girls, but it’s the star quarterback’s skill on the football field that gives him his pick of the Big Ten colleges. To escape the crushing demands of his win-at-all-costs father, Zach opts for a private university in upstate New York where…his present and past collide. And the one girl he’s always wanted but can’t have–and a class trip to Paris–turn out to be the ultimate game changer that has him breaking every one of his rules.

Book: Only for You (Unforgettable You #1) by Beverley Kendall
Published: December 30th, 2012
Pages: 294
Genres: Romance, New Adult, Freebie On Amazon, College
Format: Kindle
Date Read: September 25-29, 2017
Rating: 3.5 Potatoes 🥔🥔🥔

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. I almost wanted to take a day and think about how I wanted to word my review. Did I enjoy the book? Yes. Did I love it? No. Would I read it again? Probably not.

It was a good book, I enjoyed a lot of the characters and it was a decent read but there was nothing that made me want to block out the world for a few hours in a mad rush to finish this book. It kept me engrossed enough to continue reading but there was nothing extraordinary about it, at least for me.

That being said, check this book out – you might feel differently than I did. This review can also be found on my blog The Book Potato

The Score (Off-Campus #3) by Elle Kennedy

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He knows how to score, on and off the ice.

Allie Hayes is in crisis mode. With graduation looming, she still doesn’t have the first clue about what she’s going to do after college. To make matters worse, she’s nursing a broken heart thanks to the end of her longtime relationship. Wild rebound sex is definitely not the solution to her problems, but gorgeous hockey star Dean Di-Laurentis is impossible to resist. Just once, though, because even if her future is uncertain, it sure as heck won’t include the king of one-night stands.

It’ll take more than flashy moves to win her over.

Dean always gets what he wants. Girls, grades, girls, recognition, girls…he’s a ladies man, all right, and he’s yet to meet a woman who’s immune to his charms. Until Allie. For one night, the feisty blonde rocked his entire world—and now she wants to be friends? Nope. It’s not over until he says it’s over. Dean is in full-on pursuit, but when life-rocking changes strike, he starts to wonder if maybe it’s time to stop focusing on scoring…and shoot for love.

Book: The Score (Off-Campus #3) by Elle Kennedy(Goodreads)
Published: January 11th, 2016
Pages: 354
Genres: Romance, New Adult, College, Sports, Athlete
Format: Kindle
Date Read: January 27-29, 2016
Rating: 5 Potatoes! 🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔

Dean, Dean, Dean. I felt like I had to wait FOREVER to read his book. I have been a fan of this series since the beginning. I read the first one not long after if came out and immediately put the next book on my pre-order list. I love all of the characters in this series, they just pull you in!

When I first saw the summary that Dean was going to be paired with Allie I was a little worried. Allie had always been linked with Sean in the first two books, they were meant for each other (or so I thought!).

Dean and Allie fit so well together. He was able to bring out the care-free side of Allie and she was able to curb his man-whore ways. I loved their playful banter and the way their characters truly were two halves of a whole. And of course the sex was amazing. Why wouldn’t it be, with all of the “practice” Dean has had? Haha.

One thing I love about Elle Kennedy is that she is always able to incorporate humor in her books and oh boy did this one have some doozies. The break in scene, anything that has to do with Winston and of course Summer! I really want to read Summer’s story, I hope that is something in the works. That girl is a hoot!!

Five stars for Elle Kennedy, another smash hit!

Scoring Wilder by R.S. Grey

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With Olympic tryouts on the horizon, the last thing nineteen-year-old Kinsley Bryant needs to add to her plate is Liam Wilder. He’s a professional soccer player, America’s favorite bad-boy, and has all the qualities of a skilled panty-dropper.

* A face that makes girls weep – check.
* Abs that can shred Parmesan cheese (the expensive kind) – check.
* Enough confidence to shift the earth’s gravitational pull – double check.

Not to mention Liam is strictly off limits. Forbidden. Her coaches have made that perfectly clear. (i.e. “Score with Coach Wilder anywhere other than the field and you’ll be cut from the team faster than you can count his tattoos.”) But that just makes him all the more enticing…Besides, Kinsley’s already counted the visible ones, and she is not one to leave a project unfinished.

Kinsley tries to play the game her way as they navigate through forbidden territory, but Liam is determined to teach her a whole new definition for the term “team bonding.”

Book: Scoring Wilder by R.S. Grey (Goodreads)
Published: June 15th 2014
Pages: 356
Genres: Romance, New Adult, College, Sports, Athlete
Format: Kindle
Date Read: October 15-20, 2015
Rating: 4 Potatoes 🥔🥔🥔🥔

This book was really more of a 3.5 star than a 4 star but I’m rounding up because I truly enjoyed Liam Wilder. Liam was sexy, funny and an all-around “good” guy. He treated Kinsley right and wasn’t afraid to go after what I wanted. You kind of have to admire the guy for that at least, right?

My feelings for Kinsley were mixed. I tried so hard to like her and sometimes it worked. Other times, I wanted to stop reading because she was so childish and annoying with her thought process. I just wanted to yell at her and tell her to grow up! I know her character is only 19 but she’s in college, she’s not a baby. She’s old enough to have sex so she should be adult enough to deal with a lot of other things.

I absolutely loved Becca – I hope there is a book about her and Penn. She cracked me up! And I loved her footsie pajamas. Then again, who wouldn’t?

The reason I am not giving this book a higher rating is something is lacking from within its pages. The writing was good, the characters were enjoyable, the plot was interesting but something was missing to give it a higher rating. I have no idea what it is so if someone figures it out, please let me know!

The Hazards of Skinny Dipping (Hazards #1) by Alyssa Rose Ivy

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This isn’t a deep book about first loves or self-discovery. If you want a book like that, I’d be happy to recommend one, but I don’t have that kind of story to tell. Instead my story is about rash decisions and finding out that your dream guy is bad in bed. It’s the story of when I finally went skinny dipping, and how my life was never the same again. Oh, and it’s also the story of my freshman year of college and realizing Mr. Right might have been there all along.

Book: The Hazards of Skinny Dipping (Hazards #1) by Alyssa Rose Ivy
Published: May 17th 2013
Pages: 249
Genres: New Adult, Romance, College
Format: Kindle
Date Read: September 25, 2015
Rating: 3.5 Stars 🥔🥔🥔

I took a few days to process how I felt about this book before I wrote the review and I’m still not sure how I want to go about this. I liked the book, I really did but I also had a lot of problems with it.

I enjoyed the character of Reed, such a sweetheart, and I hated Dylan with a fiery passion. He was such a jerk and never did anything to redeem himself. I’m honestly not sure what Juliet saw in him, other than his looks, in the first place. And I have no clue why she continued to date or why she did so in the first place! I had a huge problem with Juliet – maybe I have old fashioned views but she seemed to sleep with Dylan (and Reed, for that matter) very quickly. She barely knew either of them, on a personal level, and just slept with them. It was like, okay we talked, let’s have sex! And she just jumped from one to the other, which I don’t agree with at all. I don’t know if I’m the only one who felt that way but it definitely turned me off her character when she did that.

I feel like this book could have been so much better if the storyline would have had more time to develop and scenes were more drawn out. Things happened so quickly in the book and it gave me almost no time to get to know or identify with the characters. They are practically strangers to me. I get that this is a novella but I still felt like it wasn’t enough.

So, that’s why I’m giving this book a rating of 3.5 (leaning more towards 3 than 4, even though I loved Reed!)

A Perfect Ten (Forbidden Men #5) by Linda Kage

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Let your hair down, Caroline, they said. It’ll be fun, they said.

I know I’ve closed myself off in a major way over the past year, ever since “the incident” where I messed up my life completely. It’s past time I try to live again or just give up altogether. But this is quite possibly the craziest thing I’ve ever done. In a last ditch effort to invigorate myself, I’m standing outside Oren Tenning’s bedroom, I just peeled off the sexiest pair of underwear I own, and my hand is already raised to knock. My brother would disown me for doing anything with his best friend, and he’d probably kill Oren. But if I play my cards right, no one will ever know about this. Not even Ten.

Maybe after tonight, I’ll finally get over this stupid, irrational crush I hate having on the biggest jerk I’ve ever met. Or maybe I’ll just end up falling for him even harder. Maybe I’ll discover there’s so much more to my crude, carefree hunk than meets the eye.

Book: A Perfect Ten (Forbidden Men #5) by Linda Kage (Goodreads, Amazon)
Published: March 30, 2015
Pages: 435
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Erotic, College, Romantic Comedy
Format: Kindle
Date Read: September 19-20, 2015
Rating: Five Potatoes! 🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔

This book was so much better than I thought it would be! I’m not going to lie, as much as I love Ten, I was worried about reading his book due to his man-whore ways. Boy, was I worried for nothing!

Ten did a complete 180 when it came to Caroline – he loved her so fiercely and changed everything about his lifestyle for her, without question mind you. He wanted to be with her and once they were finally on the same page that was it – they were together. When they moved in together he didn’t have any regrets or second thoughts, it was natural for him. And, of course, who doesn’t love his comments? I love his humor.

I absolutely loved this story, I had been waiting for it for so long since I was interested to see how it would play out. Ever since I read Noel Gamble’s book I knew this couple would eventually be together. And Caroline? She was one of my favorite heroines of all time. She pushed past her comfort zone and just went for her man, She knew they were meant to be together and she didn’t let any one or any thing get in her way. You go girl!

What I didn’t like about this book: Noel’s reaction to Caroline and Ten’s relationship. Not cool. I don’t want to spoil things for any one but he could have been so much more supportive. On the other hand, he’s her older brother who basically raised her so I can understand his protectiveness. But, I still have to defend my boy Ten!

I loved this entire series so far and I would highly recommend all of these books. But, in the event that you are unable to get your hands on all of the books you must read A Perfect Ten and Be My Hero (Ten and Pick, respectively). Pick is a must read though – oh, how I love Pick.

With Every Heartbeat (Forbidden Men #4) by Linda Kage

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I used to think everything was black and white, truth or lie, easy or hard, that if I could just escape my strict, overbearing, abusive father, my life would be perfect. But since I’ve found a reason to risk his wrath and leave, to help a friend in need, I’ve come to realize everything I thought I knew is wrong.

Friends have their own agenda, honesty comes with a dosage of lie, easy doesn’t even exist, keeping secrets sucks, and love…love is the most painful thing of all.

Maybe if Quinn Hamilton hadn’t asked me to skip classes for the day and help him pick out an engagement ring for my best friend, I wouldn’t have fallen for him so completely on that sunny Tuesday afternoon and I wouldn’t feel so conflicted. But I did, and I can’t take it back, no matter how hard I try. So I have to deal with the fact that even I’m not as good, or honest, or caring as I’d always thought I was, and no matter what I do next, someone’s going to get hurt. Probably me.

Book: With Every Heartbeat (Forbidden Men #4) by Linda Kage (Goodreads, Amazon)
Published: March 2nd, 2015
Pages: 408
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Erotic, College, Romantic Comedy
Format: Kindle
Date Read: September 18, 2015
Rating: Five Potatoes! 🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔

Let me start of by saying just how much I have been enjoying reading this series. Linda Kage has created a wonderful world for us to embrace and learn about. All of the characters in this series are so intriguing and I love each one more than the last. Except Pick, I have a special place in my heart for him. Oh how I love Pick.

Anyway…

With Every Heartbeat was an amazing book – I felt so much for the hero and heroine, who truly were a match made in heaven. I laughed, I cried, I contemplated throwing by kindle across the room because I hated Cora so much…

Cora. What an evil brat. I don’t think I have hated a character quite as much as I hate her and I try to use that word sparingly because its a very strong emotion. There is a special place in hell reserved for horrible people like her. The things she did to her boyfriend and best friend… there is just no excuse for anything she did and I found no redeeming qualities in her whatsoever.

Quinn aka Ham was just as wonderful as I knew he would be. He is truly a “good” guy who always has peoples best interest at heart. What a sweetheart, really. I loved him. And Zoey was such a likeable heroine; she was just as “good” as Quinn – they were made for eachother. Truly.

As usual, I love that Linda Kage always brings in the characters from the previous and future books – I got my Pick fix and I love Eva and Reese’s friendship, they entertain me greatly. And of course, Ten – I love the colorful things that come out of his mouth.

So, even though I absolutely hated Cora the Whora, I still loved this book and it truly was wonderful. Brava!

Be My Hero (Forbidden Men Book 3) by Linda Kage

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Once upon a time, there was this pampered rich girl who was kind of full of herself. She really only cared about appearances and hiding all her dark, ugly secrets under the guise of an opinionated snob. But then Eva Mercer got pregnant, shot by a psycho, and kicked out of the only home she knew. Now she’s broke, unemployed, and has to start anew with a newborn to raise. But how?

On the other side of town, sexy, tattooed orphan, Patrick Ryan, can’t get a break. He’s out on parole for defending the last damsel in distress while trying to help her support her child, but all he wants is to find his one true love. He knows this woman by scent, smile, and laugh, but he’s never actually met her. He doesn’t even know her name. He just knows she’s the key to fixing everything.

One kind of hero can save you from physical harm. Another can rescue you from a different kind of doom. To reach their dreams, Eva and Pick can save each other. But first, they must open their hearts and learn how to trust.

Book: Be My Hero (Forbidden Men Book 3) by Linda Kage (Goodreads, Amazon)
Published: August 25, 2014
Pages: 377
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Erotic, College, Romantic Comedy, Guys with Tattoos/Piercings
Format: Kindle
Date Read: September 17-18, 2015
Rating: Five Potatoes! 🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔

PICK IS MY NEW BOOK BOYFRIEND! I absolutely love him! I thought the first two books in this series were great but this book was even better, if that’s possible!

Pick is so wonderful – he’s down to earth, he’s funny, he’s sexy, sweet, a wonderful father and he treats women like gold. What’s not to love?

I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about Eva going into this book due to everything she did in the first book of the series but she totally redeemed herself. Knowing what she was going through in the first book made her actions more understandable. She and Pick were so cute! And she is such a natural mother, she should have given herself a lot more credit than she did. I love how this author incorporates all of the other characters in each book. Love, love, love.

Overall – this book is amazing, I will recommend it to everyone!!!