Mina V. Esguerra - PLAYING AUTUMN - Book Review + GIVEWAY!

Hello, darlings! Welcome to the PLAYING AUTUMN tour stop on my blog, organized by BOOKISH DIARIES BOOK TOURS!

Today, I'll be reviewing Mina V. Esguerra's PLAYING AUTUMN, which is available on AMAZON for only $0.99 until March 28th! YAY! 

PLAYING AUTUMN
by Mina V. Esguerra
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Links:
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23479256-playing-autumn

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UOI69FS *It’s only $0.99 for the duration of the blog tour!*

Haley Reese is going back home to Houston and she's dreading this trip. She volunteers as a mentor to young musicians at an annual festival, and the longer she's been doing it, the more she feels like a fraud. It's been years since the web videos that made her sort-of famous first came out, and she hasn't done anything else to pursue the career in music she's always wanted. Things start looking up when she shares a plane ride with Oliver Cabrera, music prodigy, rock star, and the reason why she picked up an instrument in the first place.

Oliver Cabrera hasn't called any place "home" since he started touring professionally in his teens, but Houston is as close to it as any. He's also nearly broke, his career just about over. When he gets the invitation to mentor at the Breathe Music Festival again, he decides, what the hell, he should finally show up. He meets Haley, Hot Piano Girl herself, and finds her own fear of failure might be easier to fix than his own.

Playing Autumn was first released in 2013 in the Rock Gods of Romance ebook anthology. This is a revised, expanded, and steamier edition.

***

My Rating: 4/5 Stars

Holy mother of corn, this book is HOT.

I'm sorry, but that's the first thing that came to mind when I read this baby. 

As a big fan of anything related to pop culture, and having watched reality competitions all my life, I thought that this was an interesting read. PLAYING AUTUMN has a colorful and refreshing set of characters that somehow make you feel involved right away. From the meet cute, to how the story progressed, this was a lovely thing to read.

Another thing that I liked about this was that I believe that it fits the kind of life that people live these days. You have these music camps. These reality shows. and of course, there's the fact that you could be famous simply by uploading a video somewhere online, provided that you have talent and charm--and both Haley and Oliver have that.

More so, I liked the fact that this book shows you the importance of dreams--of not being afraid to be yourself and not feeling the need to compromise; about why it's important to stay true to yourself ans stick up for who you are--while learning about things you don't know about in the process.

Romantically speaking, this was a winner! And oh my god, there's one part of the book that was just super hot, I was like...am I really reading something by a Filipino Author? And hell yes, I was--which only means that we could GO THERE, and make it classy and beautiful and romantic and all of those things.

I know that it's summer in the Philippines right now but I'm telling you: PLAYING AUTUMN is one of the best books you could read this season--especially if you need a little romance and sexiness--and music--in your life!

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GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mina V. Esguerra writes contemporary romance and young adult novellas. She has a bachelor's degree in Communication and a master's degree in Development Communication, put to good use in her work as trainer and content management consultant. Mina lives in Metro Manila, Philippines, with her husband and daughter.

She finds inspiration in the lives and experiences of other people, so the answer to "Is this story based on you?" is always, always "No."

Links:

Website - http://minavesguerra.com

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/minavesguerra

Twitter - https://twitter.com/minavesguerra

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/minavesguerra

Mary Kubica - THE GOOD GIRL - Book Review + Theme Song

Title: The Good Girl

Author: Mary Kubica

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

"I've been following her for the past few days. I know where she buys her groceries, where she has her dry cleaning done, where she works. I don't know the color of her eyes or what they look like when she's scared. But I will."

Born to a prominent Chicago judge and his stifled socialite wife, Mia Dennett moves against the grain as a young inner-city art teacher. One night, Mia enters a bar to meet her on-again, off-again boyfriend. But when he doesn't show, she unwisely leaves with an enigmatic stranger. With his smooth moves and modest wit, at first Colin Thatcher seems like a safe one-night stand. But following Colin home will turn out to be the worst mistake of Mia's life.

Colin's job was to abduct Mia as part of a wild extortion plot and deliver her to his employers. But the plan takes an unexpected turn when Colin suddenly decides to hide Mia in a secluded cabin in rural Minnesota, evading the police and his deadly superiors. Mia's mother, Eve, and detective Gabe Hoffman will stop at nothing to find them, but no one could have predicted the emotional entanglements that eventually cause this family's world to shatter.

An addictively suspenseful and tautly written thriller, The Good Girl is a propulsive debut that reveals how even in the perfect family, nothing is as it seems….

***

Oh god. Oh my god. Oh.my.god.

Sorry for the loss of words; I have a problem putting into words my feelings about books that I REALLY ENJOYED. Omg. I gave this one 5 Stars (which I rarely do nowadays) because I like mysteries and more often than not, I already know what's going to happen, but this one just made be gasp in the end because it turned out to be something else.

I'm a big fan of GONE GIRL, so when I saw this book's blurb, I was like...Okay, I have to read this. And I have to say, even in the first couple of pages, I was hooked already. The author has this way of gripping you and making you want to read every page. And this is her debut novel so I can't wait to read what she puts out next.

Anyway, the story is told in varying points of views of the characters. I really like that, given that I'm a fan of Jodi Picoult, and most of her works are that way, so that's also one of the reasons why I liked this book. This is the kind of story that will twist your mind and just probably leave your jaw hanging.

I don't want to say much because I don't want to spoil it for you, but believe me when I say that it's not your usual thriller, and I think it's perfectly done (and again, I barely say that). 

You want to be scared? Read this. You want some romance? Read this. You want to wonder what's going to happen next, think that you're right, then see that you're actually not? Read this.

You want a happy ending? Well, that depends on what your version of a "happy ending is", but still, read this. *insert evil laughter here*

Anyway, in summation, THE GOOD GIRL is one of the best books I've read in recent weeks. It's fresh, it's great, and it will stir up a well of emotions in you (and make your twisted brain as happy and satisfied as can be)

Also, I think this song is perfect for the book, too. This is Paramore's "Last Hope".