So I read 19 books in May and started another 2 which is about average for me. I am going to try and read a lot more over the summer months since I don’t have college to finish and university applications to worry about. You will also notice that the books in my wrap up and review post won’t match the publication dates of the review as I pre-scheduling a lot of my work in advance.
1. Scandalous Liaisons by Sylvia Day - Scandalous Liaisons by Sylvia Day is a trio of classic sensual romances, linking the tales of wicked rakes and the flawless aristocratic young women whose hearts - and bodies - they melt. In Lucien's Gamble Lucien Remington, a debauched libertine, finds the untouchable Lady Julienne La Coeur dressed as a man in his gentleman's club. In Stolen Pleasures, Olivia Merrick, a merchant's daughter, finds out that her new husband, Sebastian Blake, is actually high-seas pirate Captain Phoenix. . And in Her Mad Grace Hugh La Coeur, the Earl of Montrose, shelters from a snowstorm in an eerie mansion owned by a mad duchess. But her companion, fiercely independent Charlotte, might just keep him warm in the night . . .
2. The Internet Ideology: From A as in Advertising to Z as in Zipcar by Massimo Moruzzi - Regardless of the question, the Internet is the answer. We are told that the Internet and the market are the solution to every kind of problem. But is it true? Will Big Data help us to understand the world? Is the Internet really on the side of democracy? Does it make sense to make gamify everything? Is the Internet (still) the Frontier? Or is that era past us and we are now faced with the greatest concentration of economic power of all time? It seemed perfectly normal to Jeff Jarvis, a famous American journalist, to ask: "What Would Google Do?" if the company based in Mountain View were put in charge of the public sector. It apparently didn't occur to him that the rules and goals the public sector lives by are, or at least should be, different from those of a private company. According to many, the Internet, this jumble of servers and communication protocols, is the greatest invention ever. But is it really so? And wasn't the same thing said of inventions such as the telegraph, the radio, movie pictures, television, or nuclear energy? Today the Internet is winning. To the point that it seems natural that it should win. But is it so? Does the Internet have to win? Is the Internet's impact positive for society? Perhaps it's time to clear our minds and talk about the Ideology of the Internet. We will speak about...
3. A Wizard of Earthsea (Earthsea #1) by Ursula K. Le Guin - Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth. Hungry for power and knowledge, Sparrowhawk tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.
4. Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber - The only thing more dangerous than a lie . . . is the truth. When a family man is killed at point blank range in his home, it shakes a sleepy town to its core. The murder is a strange, horrifying crime but for the authorities it’s an open-and-shut case. Ten years on, the victim’s daughter, Josie, has started afresh in New York – far from the tragic events that blew her family apart. No-one knows the truth about her previous life, not even her fiancé. Investigative journalist Poppy is convinced the wrong man is in jail for the murder and she’s determined to prove it. What starts off as a true-crime podcast snowballs into a national phenomenon and everyone has an opinion on the case. Poppy’s relentless pursuit of the truth threatens to expose old secrets. Josie realizes that her father’s murder could have consequences more devastating than she had ever imagined.
5. American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis - Patrick Bateman is twenty-six and works on Wall Street; he is handsome, sophisticated, charming, and intelligent. He is also a psychopath. Taking us to a head-on collision with America’s greatest dream – and its worst nightmare – American Psycho is a bleak, bitter, black comedy about a world we all recognize but do not wish to confront.
6. Gemina (Illuminae Files #2) by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman - Hanna Donnelly is the station captain's pampered daughter and Nik Malikov is the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. Together they struggle with the realities of life aboard the galaxy s most boring space station, blissfully unaware that Kady Grant and the Hypatia are headed right toward Heimdall with news of the Kerenza invasion.
7. Obsidio (Illuminae Files #3) by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman - Asha survived BeiTech’s initial assault and has been working undercover with the hopelessly outmatched resistance ever since. The last thing she expected to worry about was her ex-boyfriend, Rhys Lindstrom who just landed planetside. Is he her way out – or guarantee she never gets off this frozen rock alive? But Asha’s not the only one with problems. Her cousin Kady’s ragtag band of survivors are headed for Kerenza – without enough oxygen to last the journey. Oh, and there might be an insurrection brewing. With BeiTech hurrying to repair their damaged jump gate, and a mass extermination planned for the Kerenza civilians, only a miracle could save them now. And everyone knows that miracles are just statistical probabilities…right?
8. I, Kill by Giorgio Faletti - Features a detective and an FBI agent who embark upon the most harrowing case of their careers as they attempt to track down an enigmatic killer.
9. Beauty Touched the Beast (Beauty #1) by Skye Warren - Erin cleans Mr. Morris’s house twice a week, soaking up every moment with the reclusive ex-soldier she secretly loves. Blake Morris knows he’s scarred both inside and out and is no good for the beautiful young woman who cleans his house to pay for college. But when Erin walks in on Blake touching himself and moaning her name, all bets are off. Beauty Touched the Beast is a short erotic story of lovers finding refuge with each other.
10. Beneath the Beauty (Beauty #2) by Skye Warren - Erin cleans Mr. Morris’s house twice a week to pay her tuition. The reclusive ex-soldier intimidates her, but she can’t help but feel sympathy for him. Then she walks in on him touching himself, and she has much darker, much more sensual feelings.And a beastly professor with scars he can’t hide…Blake Morris knows he’s scarred both inside and out. He’s reclusive and surly. Nowhere near good enough for the smart and beautiful young woman who cleans his house. He receives an offer to return to his alma mater as an associate professor. This is his chance to reenter the world--and to be worthy of the woman he dreams about. He never expected to see her sitting in his classroom on the first day of the semester.
11. Broken Beauty (Beauty #3) by Skye Warren – There is no blurb for Broken Beauty as it was published as part of a bind up with Beauty Touched the Beast and Beneath the Beauty.
12. Beauty Becomes You (Beauty #4) by Skye Warren - He can never turn back into a prince... A troubling revelation puts Blake's newfound career in jeopardy--and even worse, puts Erin's impending graduation at risk. He can't risk her future no matter how much he wants her. She will never have a happily ever after... A dark legacy threatens everything they've worked to build. When old debt comes between them, both Blake and Erin must fight to protect each other--and their love. Since their forbidden beginning, Erin and Blake's relationship has been marked by deep sensuality and intense emotion. The couple is tested at every turn. They're running out of time. Blake and Erin will have to trust each other to forge their own sexy ending.
13. Loving the Beast (Beauty #5) by Skye Warren – Again there is no blurb for Loving the Beast as it was published as part of a bind up with Beauty Becomes You.
14. So Sweet (Sugar Baby, #1) by Rebekah Weatherspoon - Desperate times call for desperate measures... And desperate is the only way to describe Kayla Davis's current situation. Out of work and almost out of money to cover her bills, Kayla finally caves to her roommate's nagging and follows her to Arrangements, an online dating site that matches pretty young women with older men of a certain tax bracket. Convinced this "make-rent-quick" scheme will surely fail—or saddle her with an 80 year old boyfriend—Kayla is shocked when Michael Bradbury, Internet billionaire and stone-cold salt and pepper fox, offers her a solution to all her financial troubles. It's hard enough for Kayla to accept his generosity, but what's a girl to do when the wealthiest man she's ever met is a dream in and outside of the bedroom?
15. So Right (Sugar Baby, #2) by Rebekah Weatherspoon - First comes love. Then comes…the most ill timed proposal in history? Kayla Davis never dreamt she’d meet sexy, considerate, and seriously sweet Internet billionaire, Michael Bradbury, but ten months after Michael went from Sugar Daddy to for real boyfriend she can’t imagine spending another day without him. Cohabitation is totally working—throw in a puppy or two and Kayla has her happily ever after wrapped up in a perfect little bow. Until she finds out Michael might have bigger plans for their future, like marriage, kids, and ownership of a professional sports team. Kayla is more than ready to join Michael on this amazing ride through the next chapter of their lives, but first she needs to catch her breath and see if Michael is ready to be a part of a team and not just the boss.
16. So For Real (Sugar Baby #3) by Rebekah Weatherspoon - Even the best laid plans can go completely off the rails… After pulling off the perfect wedding, Kayla Davis, now Kayla Bradbury need only sit back and enjoy her wonderful life with her amazing husband, internet billionaire and NBA franchise owner, Michael Bradbury. The two are so head over heels for each other that finding creative ways to extend their honeymoon a whole year seems like the only logical next step in their fool-proof plan for happiness. Too bad life has other ideas for the newlyweds. With personnel hiccups in her small business, a husband balancing dual CEO responsibilities, and news that there will be not one, but two unexpected additions to the Bradbury crew, Kayla needs to totally reconfigure her life if she has any hope of keeping things afloat.
17. Haven (Beards & Bondage #1) by Rebekah Weatherspoon - A week-long getaway... City girl Claudia Cade's carefree life is plunged into chaos when a camping trip with her brother in the national forests of Northern California turns into a deadly dash for her survival. A solitary world turned upside down... Nature photographer Shepard Olsen has resigned himself to a quiet existence, with only his dog by his side, until a woman in need of his protection shows up on his doorstep and throws his universe into disarray. Two lives linked by tragedy... Claudia is desperate to heal from her traumatic loss, but can’t stop thinking about her run-in with evil….or the grizzled mountain man whose quick thinking and good aim saved her life. When she shows up on Shep's doorstep again, she finds she isn't the only one who can't move on… saved by bliss. The two begin an intense, passionate relationship of Dominance and submission, pleasure and pain, but with dark memories haunting them and decisions about the future rapidly approaching, Claudia can’t help but wonder...how long can they be each other's haven?
18. All Rounder Meguru (Volume 1) by Hiroki Endo - High schooler and budding Shooto mixed martial arts fighter, Meguru Takayanagi, reunites with his old friend from grade school, Takashi Segawa, in the ring for the first time in seven years. However, while the two used to be good friends, due to the difference in their upbringings, Takashi now sees Meguru as an enemy. Without a moment of joy to commemorate their reunion, the old friends' match begins... Eden's own Hiroki Endo brings you a new tale of Shooto, MMA, and youth!
19. The Passengers by John Marrs - When someone hacks into the systems of eight self-drive cars, their passengers are set on a fatal collision course. The passengers are: a TV star, a pregnant young woman, a disabled war hero, an abused wife fleeing her husband, an illegal immigrant, a husband and wife - and parents of two - who are travelling in separate vehicles and a suicidal man. Now the public have to judge who should survive but are the passengers all that they first seem?
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