Blog Tour: Good Sensations by S.L. Scott {Review, Excerpt, + Giveaway}
Welcome to my stop on the Good Sensations blog tour hosted by Just Booked!
Today I am excited to share my review, an excerpt, and a giveaway with you all!
Good Sensations (Welcome to Paradise #3)
by: S.L. ScottPublication Date: Jan. 9, 2014
Publisher:
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: New Adult
Source: e-ARC provided by the author and JustBooked! in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 242 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Evan Ashford is sex personified. He makes me feel things I never have and crave things I’m not sure I should. Time doesn’t exist when we’re together—all of our worries becoming obsolete. Our tongues touch, and as if by memory, they move in harmony, feeling at peace, feeling at home.
Despite his mother’s best efforts to drive us apart and the miles that separate us, I’m ready—ready to claim what’s mine.
In an instant, his lips are pressed firmly against mine, consuming my words as if hearing them isn’t enough. Desire turns to need as he tastes and savors every syllable ever spoken from my heart to his.
Mallory Wray caught my attention and stole my heart. The emerald of her eyes draws me in, and it’s so easy to see why I fell in love with her. I run my hand over her cheek and into her hair, admiring everything I’ve missed so much. That familiar intensity that formed our bond back in Hawaii exists again. It’s comforting, engulfing, making my chest ache in the most painfully acute way. My heart feels grounded in her. This is right, this is us, I can finally breathe again.
Her hand settles on my cheek and a soft smile appears. “My sweet surfer. What a change a month makes.”
“It’s not the month that changed me. It’s the girl.” I turn and kiss her palm. “You make me want more than I feel I deserve.”
“You deserve everything your heart desires.”
“My heart only desires you.”
“Then I’m yours. All yours. Always.”
Life has taken these two young lovers in different directions. Can their love bring them back together? Will they be able to find their paradise once again?
Despite his mother’s best efforts to drive us apart and the miles that separate us, I’m ready—ready to claim what’s mine.
In an instant, his lips are pressed firmly against mine, consuming my words as if hearing them isn’t enough. Desire turns to need as he tastes and savors every syllable ever spoken from my heart to his.
Mallory Wray caught my attention and stole my heart. The emerald of her eyes draws me in, and it’s so easy to see why I fell in love with her. I run my hand over her cheek and into her hair, admiring everything I’ve missed so much. That familiar intensity that formed our bond back in Hawaii exists again. It’s comforting, engulfing, making my chest ache in the most painfully acute way. My heart feels grounded in her. This is right, this is us, I can finally breathe again.
Her hand settles on my cheek and a soft smile appears. “My sweet surfer. What a change a month makes.”
“It’s not the month that changed me. It’s the girl.” I turn and kiss her palm. “You make me want more than I feel I deserve.”
“You deserve everything your heart desires.”
“My heart only desires you.”
“Then I’m yours. All yours. Always.”
Life has taken these two young lovers in different directions. Can their love bring them back together? Will they be able to find their paradise once again?
I was so happy to have S.L. contact me herself asking me if I wanted to review the final Welcome to Paradise installment! My response: YES PLEASE! I have gotten so sucked into this series and naturally I had to make sure I got the ending I wanted! And I did! Woooo!
At the end of the second book, Mallory and Evan are in a pretty good place. Their relationship has been a tumultuous one. These two can run very hot and cold with one another: one minute they are super hot and are head over heels crazy, passionately in love with one another and the next they tend to let their jealousy get the best of them and are storming off, pissed as hell. However, Mallory and Evan are really growing up and we definitely see that in this book. They truly love one another and will go to some pretty serious lengths to prove that to one another. We still have some jealousy issues in this book, but nothing like in the past. Evan trusts Mallory implicitly- he doesn't however, trust some of the guys hanging around her- Ryan (a friend at school who she is also working on a project with) in particular.
It's always funny to watch Evan stake his claim with her. I almost wondered if he was going to pull out his junk and pee in a circle around her! LOL. To be fair, Evan wasn't completely off base in believing the worst about some of those guys though. I am just glad he isn't taking his jealousy out on Mallory like he did in the past. She has given him no reason not to trust her. Mallory also handles her jealousy better and although she hates doing long distance with Evan, they are making it work.
My only qualm with their story is that they have too much sex. And even then, it's not a huge deal, because unlike other books out there, there is an actual storyline here. I just felt sometimes it was used as filler and could have done without so much of it.
I'm glad to see Sunny, Zach, Murphy, and Kate back in action in this book also, even though they play a more minor role. I was pleasantly surprised by how much interaction the couple had with both sets of parents! I enjoyed watching Mal's parents meet Evan and I liked seeing how Evan's parents evolved in this book. Sometimes you have to take off the blinders and see what's right in front of you before you lose it forever. That absolutely applied to Evan's mom.
As I said earlier, I am quite satisfied with the ending of this series. I felt it ended the way it was meant to and I'm glad S.L. really showed us how just how much Evan and Mallory have changed and developed since the first book.
She stops, and with a telling grin says, “You know, despite what you may think, I’m actually not an
easy lay.”
I can’t stop the laugh. Trust me, I try. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone how fast you jumped my bones.”
“Jumped your bones? I did not jump your bones. You have clearly forgotten how the events of our first date went down.”
“Well,” I say, rubbing my chin. “It wasn’t really a date from what I recall and you still ended up in my bed… under me one time…” I close my eyes remembering how fucking sexy she was that day. “… on top of me another. Oh, and I can’t forget how hot your ass looked from behind. I clearly remember three different times.”
“I thought it was two.”
“I didn’t include the pool action, so definitely three… at least, and I wore you out, Miss I’m-Not-An-Easy-La—Ouch!” I rub my arm where she knuckles me, then laugh. “You’re feisty, Miss Wray.”
“It’s one of the reasons you fell in love with me.”
“It’s one of the many reasons I fell in love with you. Your easy ways were another.”
She jerks me to a stop in the middle of the lobby. “Oh my God, Evan, you make me sound like a whore.”
Wrapping my arms around her neck, I pull her close, and whisper, “Do you regret being with me that first day?”
“No, none of it.”
“You’re not a whore.” I kiss her on the nose. “You’re not easy. We both knew there was something more between us, something different. We did what we wanted and what felt right, and it doesn’t matter now anyway. Here we are thousands of miles away from where we started—”
“Starting a new life.”
“Our new beginning starts today.”
With a heavy sigh, she says, “Oh no.” Her smile falls away. “I let you have sex with me right when we first met. I am a total whore.”
“Only for me, baby.”She rolls her eyes. “You’ve turned me into a very bad girl, Mr. Ashford.”
“I like bad girls. Now c’mon and let’s do all this romantic stuff so I can take you home and fuck you properly.”
Laughing, she rolls her eyes again. “You’re terrible.”
“You love it.”“
I love you, so yeah, I guess I do love it.”
I can’t stop the laugh. Trust me, I try. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone how fast you jumped my bones.”
“Jumped your bones? I did not jump your bones. You have clearly forgotten how the events of our first date went down.”
“Well,” I say, rubbing my chin. “It wasn’t really a date from what I recall and you still ended up in my bed… under me one time…” I close my eyes remembering how fucking sexy she was that day. “… on top of me another. Oh, and I can’t forget how hot your ass looked from behind. I clearly remember three different times.”
“I thought it was two.”
“I didn’t include the pool action, so definitely three… at least, and I wore you out, Miss I’m-Not-An-Easy-La—Ouch!” I rub my arm where she knuckles me, then laugh. “You’re feisty, Miss Wray.”
“It’s one of the reasons you fell in love with me.”
“It’s one of the many reasons I fell in love with you. Your easy ways were another.”
She jerks me to a stop in the middle of the lobby. “Oh my God, Evan, you make me sound like a whore.”
Wrapping my arms around her neck, I pull her close, and whisper, “Do you regret being with me that first day?”
“No, none of it.”
“You’re not a whore.” I kiss her on the nose. “You’re not easy. We both knew there was something more between us, something different. We did what we wanted and what felt right, and it doesn’t matter now anyway. Here we are thousands of miles away from where we started—”
“Starting a new life.”
“Our new beginning starts today.”
With a heavy sigh, she says, “Oh no.” Her smile falls away. “I let you have sex with me right when we first met. I am a total whore.”
“Only for me, baby.”She rolls her eyes. “You’ve turned me into a very bad girl, Mr. Ashford.”
“I like bad girls. Now c’mon and let’s do all this romantic stuff so I can take you home and fuck you properly.”
Laughing, she rolls her eyes again. “You’re terrible.”
“You love it.”“
I love you, so yeah, I guess I do love it.”
S.L. Scott has a degree in Journalism and is the author of the
novel, Naturally, Charlie, and several novellas, including Sleeping with Mr.
Sexy and Morning Glory--all currently available on Amazon. Pursuing her passion
for telling stories, she spends her days escaping into her characters, letting
them lead her on their adventures. She is a Contributor to Huffington Post as
well as writes for her own blog along with several other popular sites.
Travelling, music festivals, and surfing are a few of her hobbies
she loves, but she doesn't get to enjoy on a regular basis. She has an
obsession with movies, a varied taste in books, and collects Fitz & Floyd
teapots. With a memory full of useless trivia facts, and a Keurig addiction,
she loves a fun night in with her family as much as a loud night out with her
friends.
Scott lives in the lively city of Austin with her husband, two
young sons, and two Papillons, enjoying life in the beautiful hill country of
Texas.
She welcomes your notes at sl@slscottauthor.com.
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12 comments
The covers for this series are like candy for the eyes lol! I have heard good things about it but for some reason I just never had the urge to pick it up... deff gonna keep it in mind though since you enjoyed. Great review!
ReplyDeleteYes! I love these covers so much! They are so pretty and make me long for summertime at the beach! This series is really like a soap opera though! It's what kept me so addicted!
DeleteYou are complaining about too much sex? Isn't it funny when even us smut lovers say - enough already! I don't think a lot of people understand how sex scenes are only good when they are purposeful. I think that is a problem with a lot of the mass sellers on the market. I am happy you got a satisfying ending. Surfers don't do it for me personally, but I do love how all the covers go so nicely together : )
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Yes! I just felt there wasn't enough focus on their problems as a couple. They always seemed to turn it into something sexual and just got to be a bit much at times. I like surfers okay- they're not my favorite male lead, but it's cool to read about them.
DeleteHaha, pee around her?! Hilarious! I love it when a jealous act is done well, not too crazy, but also entertaining. I haven't seen this series before, but it sounds interesting and I love the font and design of the covers. I love a series that has good character growth and development. I'll have to check this out soon. Great review Jess!
ReplyDeleteLOL. I wondered if anyone would notice that line. Bahahaha. I agree- I like when jealousy is done well and not completely irrational. Evan is a lot better in this book, but man. He has some control issues!
DeleteWonderful review, Jessica. There are indeed times when the sex is too much and I question its place in the story. So happy the ending of this series was satisfying for you! Thank you for the excerpt and the great post!
ReplyDeleteThanks Michele! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks too much sex can be irritating. Most people think I'm crazy when I say that- but I'm just kind of like- this doesn't seem realistic to me....
DeleteI love the book covers for this series! They are so pretty! I read and reviewed Good Vibrations and really enjoyed it, but haven't read books two and three yet. I'm glad that both characters matured, and curbed there jealousy. I don't like when sex is used as a filler in a story either. I'm glad you enjoyed the final installment of the series, and got the ending you wanted. Great Review!!!
ReplyDeleteLindy@ A Bookish Escape
I agree! The covers are beautiful! I did enjoy the last two books and there was something about them that just drew me in and I couldn't stop reading, even though I knew there wasn't anything life-altering going on in them.
DeleteExcellent review, Jessica. These books sound fun. And if I'm not mistaken, I've already one-clicked Good Vibrations. ;) I'm glad you liked this installment despite the amount of sex. It's always nice to watch as characters grow over the course of a series. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Brandee! I hope you enjoy Good Vibrations! I really enjoyed that one the best if I remember correctly!
DeleteLeave me some comment love! And I will get around to commenting back!
My blog is an award-free blog, however, as I just do not have the time to follow-up.