Top 10 Week! My Favorite Quotes of 2018

I love sharing my favorite quotes, because it's through other reviewers' favorite quotes that I've been hooked in and found some awesome books. So, I hope favorites help spread the book love too! This is a list of my favorite quotes from books I read in 2018 in no particular order. 

“You’re sorry?!” I lowered my voice to a grumble. “She’s sorry. I just got burned at the stake. AGAIN. But, she’s sorry. So, no big deal.”

“Actually, last time you were hung,” Gage mumbled. Sometimes I wanted to whap him with a shoe. This was one of those times.

“The point here is more about the dying, Gage, but thanks for your commitment to details.”

~REN: Reposed (REN #2) by Brittany Quagan

I highly recommend this series! 5 stars! Here are my reviews...

REN: Awakened

Ren: Reposed by Brittany Quagan

“Phoebe, the fact that I asked you to be a chaperone should have made it obvious that I didn’t want a chaperone at all.”

“I have no desire to be one,” Phoebe retorted. “However, the children are asking why you’re taking so long, and I can’t very well explain to them that you’re a libidinous goat.”

“No,” Gabriel replied, “because then you would sound like a parsimonious prig.”

Pandora was perplexed by the quick, fond grins the siblings exchanged after the sharp words. 

~Devil in Spring (The Ravenels #3) by Lisa Kleypas

This series is a favorite guilty pleasure of mine! I can easily disappear into these books. Here are my reviews...

Cold-Hearted Rake

Marrying Winterborne

Devil in Spring

Hello Stranger

"Bravery is a choice, Miss Bridges. It's not inherent or given. It's a choice we make. And real courage is tested not by those who simply make hard choices but by those who stand by them. Even in the face of fear and recrimination." 

~Tia Saunders The Truth About Us

This is an excellent story with a main character we can all relate to. My review of this book...

Something of Substance

"When he spoke to her using his holier-than-thou my-father-is-Speaker-for-the-Directorate tone, she remembered why she had once shot a fireball at his head."

          ~ Burning Bright by Chris Cannon

“Your daughter lacks manners,” Adden said.

“Hurt her and you’ll be lacking your balls,” Bryn’s mom growled through the phone. 

Adden blinked. “I see where she gets it from.

          ~ Burning Bright by Chris Cannon

“You’ve caused yet another mess—” Ferrin started. 

“Keep yelling at me, and I’ll name your grandchildren after my parents,” Bryn shot back. 

          ~ Burning Bright by Chris Cannon

Bryn sighed . “Promise me you won’t run off and do something dangerous…without me.”

“A normal female would have ended that sentence two words earlier.”

          ~ Burning Bright by Chris Cannon

I am so completely addicted to each and every book in this series. There's no way I could post just one quote. Not possible.

Here are my reviews from this series...

Going Down in Flames

Bridges Burned

Trial by Fire

Fanning the Flames

Burning Bright

“You make me wish I were alive so that I could feel my heart beating in response to just seeing you."

~ Hotline to Hell by Emily Cyr

I've loved everything I've read from this author so far. This one is no exception. I can't wait for more of her books. Check out my review of...

Hotline to Hell

“Sorry, but this guy is literally choosing to advertise Lord of the Rings on his body. I don’t think there’s going to be a whole lot of common ground.” 

~ The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

My review of...

The Upside of Unrequited

I feel responsible. I am responsible. Oh no. This is my fault. I’ve turned my sister into an online ho!” 

~ Seized by Love at Seaside (The Ryders #1)
by Addison Cole

My review of...

Seized by Love at Seaside

Me: And still, you avoid the question. Do you think she’s pretty? 

When I look up, he’s staring at her once more. His hand is fisted and the muscles in his neck flex. Finally, he turns his attention to his phone to reply. 

Torin: Pretty is one word and she is many. Beautiful. Alluring. Appealing. Charming. Cute. Dazzling. Delicate. Delightful. Elegant. Exquisite. Fascinating. Fine. Gorgeous. Graceful. Lovely. Magnificent. Marvelous. Pleasing. Splendid. Stunning. Wonderful. Superb. Angelic. Bewitching. Classy. Divine. Excellent. Enticing. Foxy. Fair. Pulchritudinous. Radiant. Ravishing. Resplendent. Shapely. Beautiful. 

I laugh and Casey shoots me a shy smile before turning back to the movie. 

Me: You said beautiful twice. 

Torin: It needed to be said twice.

This book was one of a kind. You must truly understand and savor its characters to fully appreciate them.

~ My Torin by K Webster

My Review of...
My Torin

I used to hear about plane crashes and wondered how the victims felt in the seconds before impact, wondered what it was like to know you were about to die.

Now I know. And I’d give anything not to.

            I knew those people from school. Every. Single. One.

They aren’t faceless names. They are people and they are dead.  

~ Feel Me Fall by James Morris 

All I can say is, This author knew exactly what he was doing.

My review of...

Feel Me Fall

“Every good story needs a villain.

But the best villains are the ones you secretly like.” 

~ Legendary by Stephanie Garber

Expect the unexpected in this trilogy. Check out my review of...
Legendary

Top Ten Week!!!

My Favorite Books of 2018

My Favorite Quotes of 2018

My Favorite Book Covers of 2018

My Favorite Book Boyfriends of 2018

Books I'm Looking Forward to in 2019

Book Review! The Truth About Us by Tia Souders

The Truth About Us by Tia Souders 
Genre: Young Adult (Suspense/Historical Fiction/Contemporary Romance)
Date Published: September 7, 2018
Publisher: Self

She couldn't believe it...

...her grandmother died.

But that's not the worst part.

Hidden in her grandmother's' jewelry box, eighteen-year-old Abigail Bridges discovers a cryptic letter with a final request to reveal a long-hidden family secret.

There's only one rule: tell no one.

But breaking the rules is inevitable once she meets the enigmatic Kaden Oliver and confides in him.

So, what do her grandmother's' letters, a journal from the Holocaust, and a murdered detective have to do with her family's heritage?

Nothing can prepare her for what she will find.

But once she discovers the heinous truth, the question becomes, what will she do with it?

The Truth About Us by Tia Souders was a very gripping story involving a family with a very big secret, a secret most of the family doesn't even know about. It was down right painful to read in areas. I struggled not to cry. It was impossible not to, knowing these things really happened. I'll never understand how people can be so evil to one another. The story was well told, and completely pulled me in to what was going on. My one question from the beginning was: Why would a grandmother leave all of this for her teenage granddaughter to figure out and handle? I don't know why she would put this kind of pressure on Abby. It didn't seem right to me. In real life, I don't think she would have. She would have grown some lady balls and handled it herself or maybe left all the info to her daughter, who is an adult. It wasn't fair for Abby to have been given this kind of responsibility, let alone put her in this kind of danger. I thought it was going to be some warped joke at times, because her grandmother turned it into a treasure hunt of sorts. Why not just give her all the information? I'm still mad at her grandmother. With that being said, I love the person Abby grew to be within this story because of it all, even if it took her a while to figure out the obvious. The girl was under some stress so, she has an excuse. This is a talented author who really grabs her readers and lures them into the lives of her characters.

The ARC of The Truth About Us by Tia Souders was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

Tia Souders is the author of bestselling women’s fiction novel, Waiting On Hope and the upcoming award-winning young adult novel Better Than This (formerly titled Freedom Road). When she isn’t writing, she’s likely renovating their century home. She’s a wine-loving, coffeeholic, with a sweet tooth and resides on a farm in rural Ohio with her husband and children.

To learn more about Tia Souders and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Facebook Street Team, Instagram, and Twitter.

Release Day Review! Something of Substance Tia Souders

Something of Substance by Tia Souders
Genre: Young Adult (Contemporary)
Releasing: March 28, 2018
Publisher: Self

Seventeen-year-old Grace Michaels is determined to be thin, even if she dies trying.

Part of the in-crowd at Providence High, she is steps away from being asked out by the most desired guy at school, winning a prom queen nomination, and her parents’ approval. If she can just get skinny enough, be pretty enough, and popular enough.

But Grace is thin on the outside and fat on the inside. No amount of weight-loss ever seems enough. Convinced the melting pounds will solve her problems, every pound lost brings her closer to her goals. But flesh and bone can only hide the weight of her secret for so long.

Fans of the emotional and thought-provoking contemporary YA fiction, such as Before I Fall, Tell Me Three Things, and All The Bright Places will fall in love with Souder’s heart-wrenching novel, SOMETHING OF SUBSTANCE.

Something of Substance by Tia Saunders is a powerful story. I don't think there's a single girl out there who can't relate to Grace in some way. I know I did. While I don't have the same issues she has, food is an ongoing problem for me. I completely understood the taunting voice in her head. It was very real. It's very real for a lot of people, and I think this book will help others see that and not feel so alone. This sheds light on many issues, not just self image. I think it's a must read for teens and adults alike, because although we get older, I don't think our insecurities and doubts ever truly go away. We just become better at hiding them sometimes. 

The ARC of Something of Substance Tia Souders was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

For a moment, I want to say to him all the things I’ve never spoken out loud. All the things I think about myself that I’ve never had the guts to voice before. I want to ask him if he ever feels like he’ll never be good enough. Like no matter what he does, how much weight he loses, or how much time he spends on trying to change who he is, he’ll never be the person people want him to be. Even if he does everything he can to be something—someone—in the end, it won’t even matter.
My acceptance will always be teetering on the edge because there will always be someone thinner, prettier, and better than me standing by to take my place.
The girl in the window blinks, staring back at me, and I want to take it one step further. Tell him I’m afraid. Of what people think of me. Of what I think of myself when I look in the mirror. Tell him I want to scream because no matter how popular I become, deep down, I’ll always be fat, unlovable Grace. The girl with the big legs and bad skin.

Tia Souders is the author of bestselling women’s fiction novel, Waiting On Hope and the upcoming award-winning young adult novel Better Than This (formerly titled Freedom Road). When she isn’t writing, she’s likely renovating their century home. She’s a wine-loving, coffeeholic, with a sweet tooth and resides on a farm in rural Ohio with her husband and children.

To learn more about Tia Souders and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Facebook Street Team, Instagram, and Twitter.

Teaser Tuesday! Something of Substance by Tia Souders

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by The Purple Booker. 

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share  doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser this week is from Something of Substance by Tia Souders

Tell him I want to scream because no matter how popular I become, deep down, I’ll always be fat, unlovable Grace. The girl with the big legs and bad skin.

Seventeen-year-old Grace Michaels is determined to be thin, even if she dies trying.

Part of the in-crowd at Providence High, she is steps away from being asked out by the most desired guy at school, winning a prom queen nomination, and her parents’ approval. If she can just get skinny enough, be pretty enough, and popular enough.

But Grace is thin on the outside and fat on the inside. No amount of weight-loss ever seems enough. Convinced the melting pounds will solve her problems, every pound lost brings her closer to her goals. But flesh and bone can only hide the weight of her secret for so long before it kills her.

Fans of the emotional and thought-provoking contemporary YA fiction, such as Before I Fall, Tell Me Three Things, and All The Bright Places will fall in love with Souder’s heart-wrenching novel, SOMETHING OF SUBSTANCE.

Do you have a blog? Post a link to your Teaser Tuesday post in the comments.

No blog? Post a Teaser in the comments anyway!

Cover Reveal! Something of Substance by Tia Souders

Something of Substance by Tia Souders
Genre: Young Adult (Contemporary)
Releasing: March 28, 2018
Publisher: Self

Seventeen-year-old Grace Michaels is determined to be thin, even if she dies trying.

Part of the in-crowd at Providence High, she is steps away from being asked out by the most desired guy at school, winning a prom queen nomination, and her parents’ approval. If she can just get skinny enough, be pretty enough, and popular enough.

But Grace is thin on the outside and fat on the inside. No amount of weight-loss ever seems enough. Convinced the melting pounds will solve her problems, every pound lost brings her closer to her goals. But flesh and bone can only hide the weight of her secret for so long before it kills her.

Fans of the emotional and thought-provoking contemporary YA fiction, such as Before I Fall, Tell Me Three Things, and All The Bright Places will fall in love with Souder’s heart-wrenching novel, SOMETHING OF SUBSTANCE.

Be notified when SOMETHING OF SUBSTANCE releases – Subscribe to Tia’s mailing list.

I count the days until prom like I count calories. Ninety-eight days. Thirteen hundred calories.
I almost puke at the number.
Thirteen hundred. Maybe. I’m not even sure, which scares me more than the weight of the number.
How could I not keep track? And how could I go over? Do I really have no self-control? If I keep this up, I’ll be right back where I started—fat and unpopular.
My forehead beads with sweat and my fingers twitch, as I glance at my alarm clock—only three a.m. I turn on my side, then get up, knowing there’s no falling back asleep now. Not with all the numbers running through my head. Not with the fat I must’ve stored throughout the night resettling on my thighs like it found its way back home.
I tip-toe away, out of bed, afraid someone might hear me, which is unrealistic since my mother’s snore rivals a bass drum and my father sleeps like the dead. As for my sister, Kelly, she couldn’t care less what I do.
When I come to a stop in front of the full-length mirror on my bedroom door, I don’t even take the time to assess my silhouette in the moonlight. Instead, I lift the soft cotton of my t-shirt. My eyes home in on my ribs, barely visible under a layer of fat, then move to the paunch above the drawstring of my pajama bottoms. I poke at the skin there and grimace at the cushion I find. All I see are the two cookies I ate at Cara’s house last night and I wonder how many calories were in each bite. Fifty? Twenty-five? I have no idea and my ignorance scares me. I had fun and felt too safe, too included. I let those feelings cloud my judgment and lull me, blanket me into false security, where I allowed myself to lose control.
Stupid.
As I lower my shirt, I silently berate myself, then drop to the floor and lie on my back. With closed eyes, I cross my arms over my chest and start sit-ups. I count as I go. One. Two. Three. I do this until the memory of the cookie fades and my abdomen aches. When I can do no more, I stand back up and bend forward in a deep lunge. I ensure my knee touches the ground each time, my legs at perfect ninety-degree angles. Ten laps around my room, I tell myself, then I’ll try and go back to sleep.
I once read sleep burns more calories than lying awake, something about your body recalibrating your metabolism. I don’t buy it. Regardless, there’s no way sleep burns more than lunging, so as my thighs begin to burn and catch fire, I allow the sensation to ease the fluttering in my chest and the rise of bile in my throat.
Right lunge. It will be okay. Left lunge. I’ll be okay.
I won’t gain ten pounds from two cookies.
But I could gain one.
When I finish, slightly sweat-damp and out of breath, but feeling a tiny bit better, I get back under the covers of my bed. Though I’m too hot with the thick comforter pulled up tight under my chin, I leave it there because it will make me sweat. And while perspiring won’t burn excess fat, it might help me lose water weight, giving me the tiniest bit of peace to help me relax into the mattress and slip off into a light slumber.

Tia Souders is the author of bestselling women’s fiction novel, Waiting On Hope and the upcoming award-winning young adult novel Better Than This (formerly titled Freedom Road). When she isn’t writing, she’s likely renovating their century home. She’s a wine-loving, coffeeholic, with a sweet tooth and resides on a farm in rural Ohio with her husband and children.

To learn more about Tia Souders and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Facebook Street Team, Instagram, and Twitter.

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