Genre: Contemporary Romance/Erotica
Publication Date: August 27, 2013
Photographer: Toski
Cover Designed By: Perfect Pear Creative
SYNOPSIS:
Hiding behind the anguish from my past, my coyness seeps off of me like an aroma. I have felt like a stranger in my own skin, trying to claw my way out for far too long, allowing very few people to see past my façade…until my eyes met with his. I felt a sudden rush of energy all the way to my core. It jolted me in ways I never thought possible.
Never in a million years would I have expected to be in the mess I am today. It all leads back to the night Parker Porter turned my world upside down. The night his hazel eyes undressed me, peeling away the layers of the woman I tried so hard to be. He awoke desires that burned deep within me and changed me in one quick glance, leaving me vulnerable and exposed, picking up the shattered pieces of my carefully constructed life…a life I should not be living…a life I was not born into, but placed into by the state of Maine.
Parker opened a door that I am far from closing until I have answers and am able to face the life I was destined to live. I just have to decide if his love is worth the mess.
“They say be careful of the quiet ones.” –Grace
Warning: This book is intended for readers 18+ due to explicit language and sexual encounters.
MY REVIEW:
5 STARS
OMG!
HOLY SHIT!!
FANFUCKINGTASTIC!!!
WOW!!!! JUST WOW!!!! I had the privilege of being a beta reader for this book and I am completely blown away!! The emotional roller coaster that I was on from beginning to end was phenomenal!! I have read this book more than once and my reaction remained the same each time. I laughed. I cried. I wanted to scream and throw my laptop across the room. I cried some more. I smiled. I cried again. I swooned. I cried even more. I hurt deeply for the characters involved. Did I mention that I cried? No, well I did. I cried. Wanna know how badly I cried?
Even with all of the gut wrenching crying, I fell in love with Parker and Grace's story. I also cried happy tears. A Graceful Mess touched me to my core. I felt every emotion possible while reading it and was left feeling empty once I was done. I had one hell of a book hangover to say the least. Yes, I mean EVERY time I read it. I cannot wait for everyone to meet Parker and Grace so that you can all fall in love like I have! A Graceful Mess will hands down be one of my FAVORITE books of 2013 and Parker is for sure one of my TOP book boyfriends of ALL TIME!!
This is Grace:
Beautiful.
Smart.
Kind.
Loving.
Too many times outward appearances hinder others' ability to look deep inside of us and learn who we really are.
This is REALLY Grace:
Sad.
Lonely.
Afraid.
Broken.
Looking at Grace, one would assume that she was living the picture perfect life. She has a wonderful family, the best friend anyone could ask for and a hard earned education. Sadly, Grace had a horrendous past buried deep inside of her. A past that she tried to forget daily, but couldn't. She had secrets that would drive most crazy. Grace lived her own personal nightmare. My heart hurt so deeply for her throughout this book. There were several times where I wished that I was able to just hold her in my arms and comfort her. How she went on with her everyday life amazed me. Grace deserved happiness. She deserved love. She deserved her happy ending. But in order for any of this to happen, we have to bring on the man candy!!
This is Parker:
Gorgeous.
Hot.
Sexy.
Muscular.
Once again, outward appearances don't always reveal who we truly are. Yes, those words describe Parker perfectly, but there is so much more to him.
This is REALLY Parker:
Caring.
Brave.
Determined.
Protective.
Parker, oh Parker. That man is SEX ON LEGS!! I fell in love with Parker from the beginning. He is just...OMG!! He's everything a woman wants in a man. Parker has it all! Every time he said "Sweetheart" this was me
I guess I should give you a little bit of insight into what it was like when Parker and Grace met.
Grace sees Parker for the first time...
Parker sees Grace for the first time...
Later there is some of this...
And we had some of this...
With a little of this...
I was left doing this...
I'm pretty sure that you can use your imagination for the rest ;)
So, like every love story there has to be something that could potentially tear them apart, right? Oh yeah, this one is no different. Parker has his secrets. Secrets that could jeopardize any type of future with Grace if she found out. Grace has her insecurities. Insecurities so deep that have prevented her from learning how to trust and love, which in return could leave her lonely for the rest of her life. Relationships are a lot of work and these two, if they want to be together, they have to put their hearts and souls into it.
While Parker was incredibly hot, he had his moments where he made me so mad!
I wanted nothing more than to be able to be there with Grace so I could do this...
Grace had been through enough in her life and didn't need Parker's inconsistent bullshit. I wanted to choke him at times! Who am I kidding? I couldn't stay mad at Parker long and we were back to this...
Parker and Grace needed to find a happy medium. They had decisions to make. But could they make these decisions before it was too late or would they be left with regrets?
Would they learn how to love this deeply? If so, would it ever be strong enough to survive the nightmares that lurked in the background? I want nothing more than to be able to tell you. I want to SCREAM it from a mountain top, but I can't and I won't. This is a mess you have to figure out on your own. Will it be graceful or will it be a disaster? Only time will tell...
"Follow me, Sweetheart." - Parker
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Christian “Nacole” Stayton is twenty-something years young and currently resides in the Bluegrass state. She spends her days working at a local hospital in the billing department and nights writing vigorously on her current novel. She has a passion for helping others and wears her University of Kentucky gear proudly. While her husband loves all things outdoors, Nacole enjoys the finer things in life like getting pedicures while reading on her Kindle Fire. She is passionate about her faith, family and The Bachelor. Her hair color changes with the seasons and she has a weakness for tattoos, iced coffee, and happy endings.
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