Pam's Top 10 Book Reads of 2014!

I have read so many great books this year but it wasn’t hard to narrow down my top 10.  I did, however, lump several of them as a series because I was lucky enough to read them all this year.  

    

Slammed Series (Slammed, Point of Retreat, and This Girl) by Colleen Hoover

I read all 3 books in this series this year and was so invested in this sweet, innocent romance of 2 young lovers who had to grow up real fast and take on responsibilities that anyone as young as them shouldn't have to. I love Colleen Hoover’s easy way of bringing her characters to life and making you fall in love with them.  I laughed and cried my whole way through these books and loved every minute of Lake and Will’s wonderful story.   My sweet was reading this first series by Colleen Hoover (which I can totally visualize it as a movie or a better yet, a great TV series).  My suck is that I really miss Will, Lake and whole gang.  

   

Crossfire Series (Bared to You, Reflected in You, Entwined with You, and Captivated by You) by Sylvia Day

I read all 4 of the books in this series this year and I have to say I am hooked.  I loved Gideon and Eva from the start and I could continue to read their story forever.  This hot series was filled with both highly erotic loves scenes, humor and a little suspense, all of which always kept my interest. I'm still blown away that the whole series only spans a matter of a few months of their lives.  Thank you Sylvia Day and I will be patiently awaiting Book 5.

Brightside by Kim Holden

Every once in a while a beautiful story comes along that will stay with you long after you have read the last page.  This is totally that book for me.  Everyone needs a friend like Kate, and a best friend like Gus wouldn’t be too bad either.  This story is a wonderful reminder to enjoy every second while we have it and to treat life as the precious gift that it is.  Box of tissues required.

 

Maybe Someday Series (Maybe Someday and Maybe Not) by Colleen Hoover

This is a series about unexpected roommates, building trust, falling in love and making music.  Ridge and Sydney’s story is complicated and deals heavily with resisting temptation.  I love the mix of song writing, feeling music and the torture of falling for someone you cannot have.  Warren and Bridgette’s story revolved around breaking down walls and building enough trust to let someone in.  I liked Warren in Maybe Someday and even though he was a complete wiseass, he always made me laugh.  I’m so glad he got his own voice in Maybe Not (but I’m pretty sure not many guys would really put up with Bridgette and her badass ways).  I really loved both stories.  

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

 It’s been a long time since a book has thrown me a curve ball like this one.  I didn’t see it coming and loved that. The film was good, but the book was way better (as always). 

Archer’s Voice by Mia Sheridan  

This beautiful story made me want to do three things:  Be a better listener, never judge anyone by their cover, and start taking more chances in life.    
   

   

A Little too Far and A Little too Much by Lisa Desrochers

A Little too Far - Falling in love with two guys can be tricky, especially when they both fall into the forbidden category.  I love Lexi’s humor and wit, and her journey through Rome with Alessandro was so well written that I almost could imagine being there too.  But….in the end, a girl just wants what a girl just wants.

A Little too Much - After already having fell in love with the tall, dark, and smoking hot, Alessandro Moretti from book one, I could not wait to read his story in book two.  I must admit, I was disappointed at first that the story was not told via Alessandro, but I quickly grew to love the scrappy, dysfunctional, can’t-catch-a-break, Hilary McIntyre. This was not your typical love story and that’s what I loved about it.  Again, the writing made me feel as if I was right there with them as they discovered all there was to see New York City.   

A Little too Hot - After being jilted by her boyfriend, kicked out of college, kicked out of her parent’s home AND loses her job, it’s safe to say that Sam needs a major change in her life.  Feeling that things are finally turning around after a friend sets her up with a job as a “dancer” in a gentlemen’s club, she unexpectedly enters into a dangerous world where people are not really who they appear to be.  She is instantly attracted to one of the patrons, Harrison, and even though there is a strict rule for dancing only for the patrons, she can’t help herself when it comes to him.  This book lives up to its name and I loved that past characters from the other two books made cameo appearances.  I really enjoyed this whole series. 

The Law of Moses by Amy Harmon

My Five greats for this book:  Moses’ colors, Georgia’s perseverance, Eli’s innocence, Gigi’s unconditional love and Amy Harmon‘s beautiful storytelling. This complex and compelling book was filled with emotion, frustration, determination and unexpected love.  

Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover 

Friends with benefits may be all right for a while, but sooner or later, someone’s going to fall in love.  

Tate and Miles’ story was filled with gut wrenching heartbreak, false hopes, frustrations galore, breaking down walls, trusting others and finally finding love.  You may need a box of tissues for this one too.

   

Love Me with Lies Series (The Opportunist, Dirty Red, and Thief) by Tarryn Fisher

The Opportunist - Olivia and Caleb. Oh boy, where do I start?  These tortured souls really just can’t get it right.  This highly emotional story is loaded with angst, desperation, deceit, and twisted love.  There’s nothing warm and fuzzy about this one, but I really loved its dark side and simply devoured this story.        

Dirty Red – When things didn’t go as planned for the on again off again Olivia and Caleb, along came Leah, the manipulative, spoiled ex-wife of Caleb and mother to his daughter.  This story is told through her point of view.  Question:  How could I absolutely love a book about a character I completely despise? Answer:  Good writing.

Thief – Finally we get to hear Caleb’s point of view.  The last book of the series picks up where Dirty Red leaves off and spans a course of many years and delivers a great ending.  The story sways from past and present always keeping you wondering where it all will end and will they ever get it right. 

So there you have it.  I highly recommend all of my top 10 picks and hope you get to read all of these wonderful stories.

Happy New Year!!!