BLOG TOUR: LOST IN YOU by HEIDI McLAUGHLIN ~ REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

Welcome to The Bookish Babe's stop on the Lost in You Blog Tour! The tour is being hosted by GCR Promotions; find the complete schedule here. My stop includes a review and tour giveaway.

Series: n/a
Category/Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Heidi McLaughlin
Publication Date: 5/13/13
Format: eARC
Pages: 308
Source: Received from author for review

Ryan Stone is a less than average teenager. He doesn’t have fancy clothes. He doesn’t carry around the latest smartphone and he definitely doesn’t have an MP3 player. Instead, he goes to school, does his chores and dreams of a new life away from Brookfield where he’s expected to follow in his blue collar family’s footsteps.

Hadley Carter is America’s Pop Princess. A successful recording artist living her dream with a sold-out tour and a handful of Grammy’s there isn’t much that she wants for, except love. But finding love on the road is near impossible when all she longs for are romantic dinners, a nighttime stroll on the beach and holding hands with someone who isn’t going to exploit her.

When a chance encounter introduces Ryan to Hadley, will he be like her adoring fans looking for a way in, or will it be Hadley who pursues Ryan even though it might cost her the only career she's known.

Lost in You is a story about following your dreams, taking risks and getting lost in love.

 

 



What happens when the boy from the wrong side of town falls for America's sweetheart?

Oh, WOW. Lost in You is going to be so hard for me to review! I went into this thinking I was going to get a simple, sweet love story about a star falling in love with a regular guy. And yes, that does happen, but this book was soooo much more. What really moved this story from sweet and simple to "Holy crap, my heart hurts and how in the heck will this ever work out?" is what I would maybe consider a spoiler, so how do I deal with that? I guess I'll dance around it, because guys, this is what made this book really shine for me. [Side note: Any book that shares a title with one of my favorite songs ever (Lost in You by Three Days Grace) gets a huge thumbs up.]

 

Lost in You started off a bit iffy for me. Hadley and Ryan meet at the very beginning of the story, and the attraction between them is instantaneous. That's actually fine for me, I don't mind insta-love or attraction at all, as long as the author makes me feel it. McLaughlin definitely made me feel the attraction between Ryan and Hadley, but I just wasn't sure about their actions and I did feel kind of thrown by how quickly things progressed. I was sort of on edge, wondering what was going to happen. And I know this seems extremely vague and unhelpful, but the reason I was on edge is also the issue I consider spoiler and possibly a bit controversial (it wasn't to me). I will say though, that McLaughlin dealt with this issue very, very well and with extreme care and responsibility.

 

Ryan and Hadley were both really great characters that I found extremely endearing. Hadley is America's Sweetheart, but acts like the girl next door. She has the life most would envy, but she wants love, someone to love her for who she is instead of what she does. When she meets Ryan, she sees beyond the boy with the shabby clothes and low self-esteem. Because of their circumstances, she's hesitant to be with Ryan, but can't help but fall in love with him. Hadley wants to love and care for Ryan in a way he's never known, but is also afraid that she will be the one to ruin him in the end.

  I need you to love me for me and not who I am on the stage or in the papers. That person that you saw yesterday, that's not the me you know....
....This me is dying inside thinking that her boyfriend doesn't want her anymore. This me is so in love with Ryan Stone that nothing else matters. Now tell me, Ryan, why not you?"

 

Oh Ryan Stone, that sweet, sweet boy. He's a boy that has never in his life been truly cared for and appreciated for the wonderful person he is. His home life revolves around church, no television, no music, nothing other than work school and hanging out with his best friend Dylan (a girl). From his upbringing, Ryan believes he's not worthy of dreams, or a good life, so it's a true shock to him when Hadley declares her interest. Not only is a girl finally falling for him, but she's also one of the most famous people in entertainment. But I loved how Ryan blossomed when he was with Hadley.

 

The logic behind us doesn't make sense. I come from nothing. Destined to be nothing and yet she pursues me and tells me I can be anything I want.

 

The kind of love Ryan and Hadley experience, how quickly it develops and the intensity, the circumstances was so much. I was scared for them, because I just knew that something really bad was going to happen. And of course it did happen, but what really shocked me was what happened in the fallout. McLaughlin did not take the easy way out with the story, and she definitely put the characters through hell and back. I was pleasantly surprised by how much bigger the story was than I originally thought, and how much time it encompasses. And I will say, I absolutely loved  the last portion of the story and especially how it ended. I think the way things worked out proved the depth of the characters and their emotions.

 

Lost in You is not the story I expected. It was bigger, bolder and I enjoyed it so much.

 

Favorite Quotes:

    "You make me want to try things I've never thought about before." His lips ghost on my neck, sending shivers down my spine. I want to pretend that I don't know he's [removed] and give into his raging hormones. It's like I've woken a sleeping giant and now that he's alert, there's no stopping him.    ~eARC, 24%

   I lean closer and place my lips where my fingertips were, kissing my way up his back. My arms snake around him, my fingers tickling the hair on his stomach.
  "Hadley," he croaks out my name. "I'm not going to be able to stop myself from taking you. I'm so in love with you."

 

 
Purchase Lost in You at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

 

 

 

GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author:
Heidi is the author of USA Today, Digital Book World, Amazon and Barnes & Noble Bestselling novel, Forever My Girl

Originally from the Pacific Northwest, she now lives in picturesque Vermont, with her husband and two daughters. Also renting space in their home is an over-hyper Beagle/Jack Russell and two Parakeets.

During the day Heidi is behind a desk talking about Land Use. At night, she's writing one of the many stories planned for release or sitting court-side during either daughter's basketball games.

Connect with Heidi at:
Website  |  Twitter  |  GoodReads