Thursday, May 9, 2013

BLOG TOUR: LOST AND FOUND by NICOLE WILLIAMS ~ REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

Coming 5/10


Welcome to The Bookish Babe's stop on the Lost and Found Blog Tour! The tour is being hosted by AToMR Tours; find the schedule here. My stop includes a review and giveaway.

 
 
Lost and FoundCategory/Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: 5/7/13
Format: eARC
Source: Received from author for review
 
 

There’s complicated. And there’s Rowen Sterling.

After numbing pain for the past five years with boys, alcohol, and all-around apathy, she finds herself on a Greyhound bus to nowhere Montana the summer after she graduates high school. Her mom agreed to front the bill to Rowen’s dream art school only if Rowen proves she can work hard and stay out of trouble at Willow Springs Ranch. Cooking breakfast at the crack of dawn for a couple dozen ranch hands and mucking out horse stalls are the last things in the world Rowen wants to spend her summer doing.

Until Jesse Walker saunters into her life wearing a pair of painted-on jeans, a cowboy hat, and a grin that makes something in her chest she’d thought was frozen go boom-boom. Jesse’s like no one else, and certainly nothing like her. He’s the bright and shiny to her dark and jaded.

Rowen knows there’s no happily-ever-after for the golden boy and the rebel girl—happily-right-now is a stretch—so she tries to forget and ignore the boy who makes her feel things she’s not sure she’s ready to feel. But the more she pushes him away, the closer he seems to get. The more she convinces herself she doesn’t care, the harder she falls.

When her dark secrets refuse to stay locked behind the walls she’s kept up for years, Rowen realizes it’s not just everyone else she needs to be honest with. It’s herself.

 


Lost and Found was FABULOUS. I've heard really great things about Nicole Williams' writing from a lot of my friends. I even own several of her books, just hadn't made time to read them. Now, I am kicking myself because if this book is any indication of how good her other books are, I am sold.
 
Okay, so back to Lost and Found. I love a good love story, obviously, but this one truly went above and beyond. And I know I'm kind of spazzing out here and it probably seems like I have Review-Writing-ADD, but I am just so excited about this book!
 
What we have here, in Lost and Found, is a story that I haven't found a lot of in New Adult Contemporary: a bad girl and the good guy who falls in love with her. Personally, as a former (but still fun) semi-bad girl myself, I am thrilled to have a different sort of heroine. Rowen was a girl who never had the kind of love every child deserves, a mom who chooses to only see the bad, and no belief that she deserves a good life. It really hurt me to see a girl who was so full of pain and doubt, who believes all the bad and will not let anyone close to her. So enter...
 
JESSE-FREAKING-WALKER. Guys, I am not into cowboys at all (having married a reformed one myself), but I am willing to make an exception for this lovely young man. Not only is Jesse every girl's dream in the looks department, but he is an exceptional person as well. Accepting. Kind. Gentle. Sexy-As-Hell. There is a special place in my heart for authors who create men like Jesse. I loved that he saw Rowen for who she truly was, not for the tough exterior she presented. And not only did he accept her, he embraced her, loving her not despite her past, but because of where it led her... to him. I love a love story that shows what a healthy, beautiful relationship can help accomplish. Jesse doesn't "fix" Rowen. He helps her see the wonderful, amazing person inside, something she may have never realized without him there to show her.
 
Lost and Found was not only a love story, but also one girl's path towards self-acceptance and letting go. I cannot stress how important I find books like this, not only as a terrific reading experience, but also as a means to helping some girl who may be going through a similar situation. I want to hug Nicole Williams for writing such a powerful story.
 
Lost and Found is a book that should not be missed.

  
Favorite Quotes:


  His mouth was so close to mine, I felt his warm breath on my lips when he said, "This." His lips covered mine for such a brief moment it was more of a tease than a kiss. "And this." His mouth moved over mine long enough to be in the kissing category. "And this, too." He separated from me just long enough to get those words out before his lips settled back over mine. That kiss wasn't a tease; it wasn't anything close to a tease. It was the kind of kiss a girl would forever measure against. It set the bar for all future kisses. That kiss made me want to do nothing but keep my mouth firmly planted on Jesse's until the day I died. ~eARC, 48%


  "I don't deserve you, Jesse," I whispered, never knowing anything more true. "There's nothing I ever could do to deserve you."
  He bent his face into the curve of my neck. "We don't deserve anything, Rowen. We don't deserve punishment, we don't deserve happiness, life owes us nothing. Realize that." His voice wasn't gentle anymore; it was strong as I'd ever heard it. "So we have to take what we want because life sure as shit isn't going to freely hand it over." He kissed the skin just above my collar bone. "And I want you."  ~eARC, 71%
 
 
Purchase Lost and Found at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble
 
 
GIVEAWAY
 
 



About the author:
Nicole  Williams I'm a wife, a mom, a writer. I started writing because I loved it and I'm still writing because I love it. I write young adult because I still believe in true love, kindred spirits, and happy endings. Here's to staying young at heart *raises champagne glass* . . . care to join me?

Connect with Nicole at:
Website Twitter








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27 comments:

  1. *seal clappy hands*!!! 1 - I'm so excited you loved your first Nicole Williams book! 2 - LOVED your review! You made me even more excited about this one.... you former, SUPER FUN, semi-bad girl ;)

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  2. The love story in Lost & Found sounds utterly divine Andrea. I love it when an author decides to mix it up and give us a bad boy instead of girl. Jesse sounds wonderful, I like how he doesn't try to fix Rowen, but help her anyway she can. I will certainly be adding this book to my tbr! Another fab review! :)

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  3. Jesse sounds *amazing*. I've heard great things about Nicole Williams' books from friends who enjoy contemporary romances, and although this particular genre isn't always my thing, I definitely like the sound of it too. So glad you enjoyed it! Great review as always. :)

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  4. I need to stop coming to your blog! I blame solely you for my overflowing TBR! I NEED To meet Jesse! He sounds so great. I already really loved the cover for this one but now I think I need to get my hands on it. Great review!

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  5. This sounds really great!! I think this is another must have for my already ridiculously huge TBR pile. Lol!!

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  6. Really love that cover! Can't wait to read this!

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  7. I'm a step ahead in loving this, Andrea because I love a sexy cowboy!! I'm very non-discriminating that way, lol! I can't wait to meet Jesse, he sounds amazing. And I like that this is a different sort of lead female. For once this is not the bad-boy with the innocent sweet girl story. I like a change up. Brilliant review and thanks for the giveaway! I'm so looking forward to this one. :)

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  8. Great review! Makes me really want to read this one.

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  9. Good review. I have heard great things about Nicole William's books too and I have Crash on my kindle, but haven't read it yet. This one sounds really good and I like the idea of bad girl meeting good guy becaus of rare that is!

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  10. Jesse sounds super hot, and I am into cowboys, something about the boots and the hat :)

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  11. Awesome review! Another new author for me. The book sounds like a good read.
    Thanks :)

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  12. OMG, I am buying this. I LOVE cowboys, especially hot ones. I am doing a promo for the tour so I haven't read it....yet...but I definitely well. Your glowing review has won me over.

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  13. You know my feelings on this one... I love it to death! So glad you enjoyed it as well!

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  14. I haven't read anything by Nicole yet, but this sounds amazing! I have to meet Jesse, he sounds like kind of the perfect guy. I'm not really that into cowboys, but I have made exceptions before and been pleasantly surprised (Tucker from Unearthly). Glad you enjoyed this. Great review!

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  15. I haven't heard of this author or book yet, but sounds like a lovely romance. I'm glad that it's not about one person fixing the other. It's great to see a romance that just WORKS you know? I really need to read more NA. :)

    -Lauren

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  16. Great review, cool quotes. Thanks for the giveaway.

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  17. *gasp* You haven't read a the Crash books before?! I thought you had read them. Crash and Clash are really good but I think I'll skip book 3. I'm gonna try to fit this one in next, sounds great!

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  18. I just read another review of this and that review convinced me this was a must read but your review may have me hitting the buy button! It sounds amazing!

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  19. I love love love GOOD guys so I'm adding this one to my list!

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  20. This book is already on my TBR list and I can't wait to get to it! Great review!

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  21. Oh boy! Great review, Andrea! I can't wait to read this one. I love me a hot cowboy! ;) And those quotes...smexy!

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  22. OMG I have a thing for sexy cowboys!! I definitely need to read this!

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  23. YAY, ANDREA! I'm not a cowboy fan either so it's a huge deal if you loved him so much - gives me hope I'll enjoy this character as well. I'm surprised you haven't read any of Nicole's books yet - I think they're right up your alley. I hope you'll get to them soon:) Lovely review, hon!

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  24. I totally loved Crash and am so excited to read Lost and Found! It was so fun meeting her too. Makes it so much better to read her books. :) Great review pal. Glad you loved it.

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  25. I am excited to read this book even more now after your review! I have heard of it before, but you were so excited about it, I need to read it now!

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  26. I don't care what I have to rearrange, I'm reading this one this week!

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