As a reader who loves the theme of opposites attracting I was drawn to Make Me Believe by Karen Ferry from the first page to the last. Keep reading to get a tantalizing taste of this emotionally intense read, along with my impressions of it, and then add it to your bookshelf. In honor of this first installment in the Believe series make sure to fill out the form below for the chance to win swag, a keychain, and signed paperbacks too!
Sometimes, a chance meeting is just the push you need in order to break free from the darkness within…
My name is Emma, I’m 23, and I’ve never been kissed. I’m no virgin…But kissing is too intimate, too intense, and I don’t want that – not ever. I like sex, though, and most of my hook-ups don’t seem to mind the no-kissing part.
But then I meet Daniel, who’s such a geek, and definitely not the kind of guy I’d normally take an interest to. He’s the shy, quiet type, but with such a charming smile, and he makes my heart race – something I’ve never experienced before.
Daniel has his own issues to work through, and I know my hardened heart shouldn’t melt when he looks at me. I really shouldn’t be falling for him, either, but somehow, he manages to tear down my walls, and I’m scared…because once he learns my secrets, he’ll want nothing to do with me.
All I know is that Daniel makes me feel things that I have never felt before – but do I dare let down my walls and confide in him?
Will I let him be my first kiss?
This is my story, and I’ll reveal everything in my own sweet time…
Just don’t expect all the hearts-and-flowers stuff.
Life is messy, and mine is no different…
EXCERPT:
Daniel
My alarm goes off and I hit snooze quickly.
Just five more minutes . . .
The ping alerting me to a text message, however, makes me open my eyes slightly, and my arm sneaks out from the warmth of the sheet covering me. I fumble around a bit, my hand searching for my glasses. As soon as I have found them and put them on, I pick up my phone from the floor, swipe the screen and see that the text is from Emma.
Damn, she’s up early, I think, yawning, and I look at her message:
Emma: You know, the walls in this building are really thin . . .
I frown, confused.
Me: What do you mean??? This is weird . . .
Emma: Let’s just say that I’m glad I won’t have to teach you everything . . .
What the . . . ? I bolt upright in bed as a feeling of dread fills my gut. Before I have the wits to form a reply, another ping alerts me of a new message. I’m almost too embarrassed to read it, but I think I have to man up, and so I take a look.
Emma: The next time you need to . . . err . . . relieve some tension? Go do it in the shower, okay? ;-)
That winky face at the end mocks me, and I can feel an embarrassing blush starting to rise on my neck. What the hell do I say back to her? This is really embarrassing. Ugh. I can’t make a joke of this, but I do have to answer her, I guess. I’m quite relieved that I didn’t shout out her name last night, though . . . now, that would be pretty difficult to talk myself out of. I don’t want her to think that I’m some kind of pervert just because I had her in mind when I jacked off.
Me: Will do. See you at work.
I throw the phone behind me on the bed and rake my hands through my hair, all the way to my nape, holding onto it tightly for a couple of seconds. I breathe deeply a few times before loosening my hold, and I decide to try to ignore the fact that Emma obviously heard me get myself off last night. There’s nothing I can do about it.
MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:
Readers who love the theme of opposites attracting will find themselves drawn to the sweet and sensual romance between the colorful yet emotionally bruised Emma and the geeky Daniel with a painful past of his own. Told in dual POVs readers are drawn into their world where faith, love, and healing really do exist and is what brings them together as they work towards their HEA by putting their pasts behind them. From start to finish I was drawn to these vividly depicted characters and was cheering them on every step of the way as they moved from friends to lovers.
Emma's running from a past just hinted at throughout the early stages of the book, hiding behind alcohol, one-night stands, and sarcasm. She's run all the way to Copenhagen where she finds refuge working at a bookstore with Mr. Andersen, the sweet fatherly figure owner, her friend Suzy, and a small group of colorful denizens surrounding the bookstore. She's slowly coming to realize though that her way of coping isn't working and that her friends are running out of patience with her secretive nature and self-destructive behavior. Into her emotionally chaotic life comes the geeky yet shy and unassuming Daniel who's a mystery to her and who becomes an obsession for her to figure out. Figuring him out leads to numerous close encounters that slowly become romantic. With Daniel she finally understands the power of love and the importance of connecting with another person. With his support she'll finally deal with her past instead of hiding behind her usual facade in a emotionally intense journey to HEA. From the start Emma captures your attention with her strong will, unapologetic sexuality, and larger than life attitude. Seeing her past pain bleed into her everyday life had me aching for her. There was a foreboding feeling all along regarding her past that was palpable and that had me wanting to know more. Emma's a memorable heroine and I loved her interactions with Daniel that crackled with electricity.
Daniel's a truly wonderful character, the quintessential hero in his words and deeds. He was a bit geeky with his drab clothes, horn-rimmed glasses, and clumsy nature but you can't help being drawn to him. He has a heart of gold and understands Emma's painful past, never pushing her and helping her appreciate going slow with relationships. He's had a painful past of his own with his stuttering and dyslexia but has never let it hold him back. He knows what he wants out of life and isn't afraid to go after it...and in this case it's Emma he wants. He doesn't hide behind the past but rather focuses on the future he hopes to have with Emma. Daniel's a bit shy and unassuming at first but being around Emma brings out a confident and sexy side that's immensely appealing and results in some very scorching sexual interludes as this virgin shows how good of a student he really is under Emma's tutelage. I found myself smiling whenever he was on the scene and I've now added him to my list of book boyfriends.
For a debut novel Ms. Ferry shows lots of talent as she beautifully wove together a sweet yet sensual romance with heavy emotional issues. Though the start of the book is a bit slow I enjoyed the overall journey between these two very different characters who discovered more in common the deeper their connection became. Along with such strong lead characters was a colorful cast of secondary characters that were immensely supportive and memorably unique. The city of Copenhagen played a big role as well in bringing Daniel and Emma together and its vivid depiction helped to immerse me even further in this compelling and heartwarming story. Readers wanting a book that will put a smile on your face while leaving you tingly with a steamy romance will want to add this book to your bookshelf and watch where Ms. Ferry takes us next!
Emma's running from a past just hinted at throughout the early stages of the book, hiding behind alcohol, one-night stands, and sarcasm. She's run all the way to Copenhagen where she finds refuge working at a bookstore with Mr. Andersen, the sweet fatherly figure owner, her friend Suzy, and a small group of colorful denizens surrounding the bookstore. She's slowly coming to realize though that her way of coping isn't working and that her friends are running out of patience with her secretive nature and self-destructive behavior. Into her emotionally chaotic life comes the geeky yet shy and unassuming Daniel who's a mystery to her and who becomes an obsession for her to figure out. Figuring him out leads to numerous close encounters that slowly become romantic. With Daniel she finally understands the power of love and the importance of connecting with another person. With his support she'll finally deal with her past instead of hiding behind her usual facade in a emotionally intense journey to HEA. From the start Emma captures your attention with her strong will, unapologetic sexuality, and larger than life attitude. Seeing her past pain bleed into her everyday life had me aching for her. There was a foreboding feeling all along regarding her past that was palpable and that had me wanting to know more. Emma's a memorable heroine and I loved her interactions with Daniel that crackled with electricity.
Daniel's a truly wonderful character, the quintessential hero in his words and deeds. He was a bit geeky with his drab clothes, horn-rimmed glasses, and clumsy nature but you can't help being drawn to him. He has a heart of gold and understands Emma's painful past, never pushing her and helping her appreciate going slow with relationships. He's had a painful past of his own with his stuttering and dyslexia but has never let it hold him back. He knows what he wants out of life and isn't afraid to go after it...and in this case it's Emma he wants. He doesn't hide behind the past but rather focuses on the future he hopes to have with Emma. Daniel's a bit shy and unassuming at first but being around Emma brings out a confident and sexy side that's immensely appealing and results in some very scorching sexual interludes as this virgin shows how good of a student he really is under Emma's tutelage. I found myself smiling whenever he was on the scene and I've now added him to my list of book boyfriends.
For a debut novel Ms. Ferry shows lots of talent as she beautifully wove together a sweet yet sensual romance with heavy emotional issues. Though the start of the book is a bit slow I enjoyed the overall journey between these two very different characters who discovered more in common the deeper their connection became. Along with such strong lead characters was a colorful cast of secondary characters that were immensely supportive and memorably unique. The city of Copenhagen played a big role as well in bringing Daniel and Emma together and its vivid depiction helped to immerse me even further in this compelling and heartwarming story. Readers wanting a book that will put a smile on your face while leaving you tingly with a steamy romance will want to add this book to your bookshelf and watch where Ms. Ferry takes us next!
My rating for this is a B+
*I got this book from the author for review in exchange for my honest opinion.
AUTHOR INFO:
Karen Ferry is a thirty-something writer, wife to a quiet, laidback man, and mother to a gorgeous, stubborn, redheaded girl who keeps her parents on their toes.
Karen tends to have a short fuse if she does not get a proper caffeine fix first thing in the mornings, but she is, in fact, a gentle person deep down.
Karen loves Italian food and wine, travelling, and spending time with her family. When she is not writing, she reads – her favourite genres are New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Erotica and Romantic Suspense. She can never get enough of romance. Or of too many book boyfriends, either.
Even though Karen is Danish, she has always felt more at ease writing stories in English, and she has not read a book in her native tongue in over ten years.
She can be very outspoken and a complete fan girl of other authors online but will, in fact, be very shy once she meets you in person.
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