Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Blog Tour for SHUFFLE by Lisa Swallow (Review & GIVEAWAY)


As a reader obsessed with rock star romances I was drawn to the premise of this book and the sensual tug of war between the bad boy of rock and the studious good girl he can't help wanting.  Keep reading to get a tempting glimpse of Shuffle by Lisa Swallow, the second installment in the Ruby Riot series, along with my impressions of it.  In honor of this release make sure to fill out the form below for the chance to win a copy of the first book in this series and Ruby Riot swag too!

Will Campbell, Ruby Riot bassist, is back at university and failing badly at everything apart from partying.
With Ruby Riot on a break, Will returns to university to finish his degree. He needs major help if he wants to pass his final year and attempts to join a not-very-rock star study group. Will is horrified to discover the person organising the group is Fleur Roberts, the girl he’s secretly crushed on for two years and who recently threatened him with a restraining order.
Fleur’s rock stars are history academics. She has no interest in any variety of pierced, tattooed slacker, especially not the jackass rock star who humiliated her at a party. There’s no way in Hell that Will Campbell is joining her group.
Faced with losing the easiest way to fix his academic problems, Will has the perfect solution: pretend he’s his twin, Nate. Will and Nate have swapped identities before so nothing can go wrong. Surely.
Fleur is successful academically, but her love life is a failure. Following a number of disastrous dates, she finds herself falling in love with a guy who is lying to her. But Will’s deceit isn’t the only thing about to shatter her world. When another man Fleur trusted betrays her, and she attempts to retaliate, Fleur discovers how dangerous he is. And when Will becomes involved, the repercussions threaten both of their futures.

BUY LINKS:  AMAZON (US)  |  AMAZON (UK)  |  AMAZON (AU)  |  AMAZON (CAN)

BUY LINKS FOR, CADENCE, THE PREVIOUS INSTALLMENT IN THE RUBY RIOT SERIES:  AMAZON (US)  |  AMAZON (UK)  |  AMAZON (AUS)  |  AMAZON (CAN)

MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:

My love of rock star romances continues courtesy of the delightful bassist for Ruby Riot, Will Campbell, and the fun and flirty dialogue that sparks between him and Fleur Roberts, the woman he's inexplicably drawn to. With this new series Ms. Swallow has crafted an entertaining read featuring a band on the cusp of fame with all the early fears of failure when their dream is finally within reach. For Will, fear of failure when it comes to his Uni education is becoming more of a reality after their recent tour had him partying too much and studying too little. With their band on a break before the release of their album he's back in school trying to prove the naysayers wrong when they call him a failure, but to do that he'll need the help of the smart and studious Fleur. Unfortunately, the last time they were together he insulted her, letting his crush for her override his usual confidence in getting women. His only choice as he sees it is to be his brother Nate to get her to help tutor him. From that moment on the story takes on a comedic turn as he tries to stay in character, keeping all the stories straight, while falling for her even more. The longer the lie goes on though the harder the revealing of the truth becomes as he doesn't want to lose the one woman worth chasing, the one woman he wants to be worthy of. Will might have a badass persona and the stereotypes of a rock star, but deep down he's very sweet. He may have enjoyed the partying lifestyle of being on tour with Blue Phoenix, but being around Fleur excites him even more as he's drawn not only to her looks but her mind and the witty and fiery banter that flares between them. He's a surprising gentleman around Fleur, protecting her and threatening the men who've broken her heart, and it's this sweet and protective side that made me love him all the more. These gentle moments were nicely balanced with a charming yet snarky side that saw him oozing with sex appeal. It's easy to be drawn to him and I can understand why Fleur was so torn as he's nothing like the usual men she goes for and he's like a gift you never knew you wanted until you opened it.

Fleur isn't a stereotypical heroine either as she's more concerned with studying than dating. She's a woman with goals, a future mapped out, that leaves her little time for the opposite sex. She's an independent woman more than capable of taking care of herself. Meeting Will changes everything, leaves her questioning what she thought she wanted out of life, which leads to a journey of self-discovery and unexpected love. After his recent insult towards her though she has no time for Will, but when "Nate" asks for her help she finds herself drawn to him despite his being a rock star. She's always found rock stars to be superficial and incapable of commitment and can't picture herself with one. Her usual choices in men of ones with brains and dedicated to their future though have turned out disastrous and have her seeing "Nate" in a whole new light. When the truth about him finally comes out it's a heartbreaking moment and I can understand Fleur's initial anger as the connection between them was unlike anything she'd experienced before. With most men Fleur's a bit naive and it led her to danger and heartbreak, especially when it came to the men she's seen as refined and the ones she's always fallen for. Through all these experiences Fleur grew as a person as at the start of the story she's a bit uptight and a bit snooty, thinking herself a bit superior in my opinion. Being around Will though brought out a softer side to her, made her a bit more approachable. By story's end I had warmed up to her and liked the person she became through interacting with Will.

This was a lighthearted story most of the time with the brotherly ribbing between Nate and Will and the fun and flirty interactions between Will and Fleur. The connection between Will and Fleur was combustible and teemed with sexual tension and banter that felt like a sensual battle of the sexes. Neither of the main characters were stereotypical which was refreshing and has me still thinking about them. I also enjoyed the British scenery and verbage that further enhanced its uniqueness amongst the crowded New Adult genre. Along with these compelling main characters comes an intriguing and colorful cast of secondary characters with Nate Campbell being in the forefront as I anxiously await his HEA. From start to finish this was an entertaining read with good flow and only a few roadblocks and a bit of angst. The romance charmed me with banter that crackled and that led to richly rewarding and steamy sensual interludes. This book is part of a series and can definitely stand on its own, but with such a delicious hero you'll want to spend every moment you can with him and read this series from the very start!

My rating for this is a B+

*I got this book from the author for review in exchange for your honest opinion.

AUTHOR PAGE:

Lisa is an Amazon bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. She is originally from the UK and moved to Australia in 2001. She now lives in Perth, Western Australia with her husband, three children, and Weimaraner, Tilly, who often makes appearances on Lisa’s social media.
Lisa’s first publication was a moving poem about the rain, followed by a suspenseful story about shoes. Following these successes at nine years old there was a long gap in her writing career, until she published her first book in 2013.
In the past, Lisa worked as an English teacher in France, as an advertising copywriter in England, and ran her own business in Australia. Now she spends her days with imaginary rock stars.
She lived in Europe as a child and also travelled when she left university. This has given Lisa stories which would sound far-fetched if she wrote them down, and maybe one day she will. These days, Lisa is happy in her writing cave, under Tilly’s supervision.


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