Review: DRUMMER GIRL by Ginger Scott

DRUMMER GIRL

by Ginger Scott

Publication Date: July 30, 2019

Genre: Mature YA/New Adult Contemporary Romance

Source: Wordsmith Publicity

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Synopsis

A mature YA/New Adult contemporary rock star romance by Ginger Scott

Arizona Wakefield was a beat without a melody. Living a half-breathing life in a half-finished neighborhood with parents who always wore half-hearted smiles, the high school senior only had one thing that let her color outside her family’s perfectly drawn lines—her drums.

Jesse Barringer was a song without a chorus. The son of a washed-up rock star who’s also one hell of a deadbeat dad, he was given two things from his father—musical genius and a genetic link to the bipolar disorder that drives him mad.

One night in a garage at the end of a cul-de-sac in the middle of a bankrupt California neighborhood, Jesse’s melody found Arizona’s rhythm. An angry boy with storm-colored eyes found a blonde angel in Doc Martens with missing lines in her own story. Where her rhythm stopped, his words took over, and together, they wrote one hell of a story.

** Drummer Girl is a mature YA/New Adult romance that touches on mental health, drug abuse and includes mature sexual situations.

My Thoughts

He was the words.
She was the rhythm.
Together, the wrote one hell of a story.

Now that is one hell of a hook. Those words and THAT COVER were all that I needed to know that I had to read DRUMMER GIRL.

I'm drawn to books about musicians, young love, and beating the odds and DRUMMER GIRL gave me all of that. DRUMMER GIRL brought out all of the feelings with Jesse and Arizona's relationship. 

I loved getting to know Jesse and Arizona and they quickly become characters who I cared about and rooted for. 

One of my favorite scenes is when Arizona and her best friend, Sam, "welcome" Jesse to the neighborhood. It was just so easy to envision how the situation went down and the perfect opener to the book. 

What I appreciate the most is how the author brings mental health to the forefront of the story. It's not discussed in hush-hush tones and isn't portrayed as shameful. And it shouldn't be. I want to read more books like this.

DRUMMER GIRL brought out so many emotions and really drew me in to everything the characters were going through. It is a book that I definitely look forward to reading again. 
  
I loved it!

Disclaimer:  I received this e-ARC from Wordsmith Publicity for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

Available Now: DRUMMER GIRL by Ginger Scott

We're celebrating the release of DRUMMER GIRL by Ginger Scott! One-click your copy on all platforms today!

Drummer Girl by Ginger Scott

Mature YA/New Adult Contemporary Romance
Release day: July 30, 2019

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2KBZLLn

Purchase Links

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2SNYgLe

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Arizona Wakefield was a beat without a melody. Living a half-breathing life in a half-finished neighborhood with parents who always wore half-hearted smiles, the high school senior only had one thing that let her color outside her family’s perfectly drawn lines—her drums.

Jesse Barringer was a song without a chorus. The son of a washed-up rock star who’s also one hell of a deadbeat dad, he was given two things from his father—musical genius and a genetic link to the bipolar disorder that drives him mad.

One night in a garage at the end of a cul-de-sac in the middle of a bankrupt California neighborhood, Jesse’s melody found Arizona’s rhythm. An angry boy with storm-colored eyes found a blonde angel in Doc Martens with missing lines in her own story. Where her rhythm stopped, his words took over, and together, they wrote one hell of a story.

** Drummer Girl is a mature YA/New Adult romance that touches on mental health, drug abuse and includes mature sexual situations.

EXCERPT:

Drummer Girl, Copyright Ginger Scott 2019

“That’s the first time I’ve played that song. I like it. We should add it to our set,” he says, pulling the strap from around his neck before setting his guitar at the foot of his bed. “What do you think?”

He twists so our knees are touching and our shoulders are squared.

“I think you’re a showoff, one. And two…I totally think we should close with that at our gig. People love retro shit like that at shows.” I don’t really know what people like at shows because the only kinds I’ve ever been to have been for high school marching nerds or jazz geeks. I probably don’t even deserve to utter the word gig yet. I’m a gig virgin. I do know movies, though, and if this life was a movie, our band would close with that.

Jesse’s eyes linger on my face, making me warm.

“Okay then,” he says, finally. “And I’m not a showoff.”

His lips pucker with his smirk and mine follow suit until a laugh seeps through.

“You so are!” I shove at him playfully, and his hands wrap around my wrists and shove back gently but don’t let go.

“No, I’m a great example. That’s a totally different thing,” he says, pulling me toward his chest until my fingertips meet the hard surface of his pecs under a well-worn white T-shirt.

“I’m pretty sure it’s just a synonym for showoff how you’re using it. In fact, now you’re just being arrogant!” I gripe back through laughter, a wry smile playing at one side of my mouth. Jesse remains quiet, though. His head leaned a tick to the right. My lips vibrate with this sudden change in atmosphere, and without even helping myself, I bite my bottom lip. There is just enough light in the room to see these small things we’re doing, these…signs. At least, I’m giving a sign. I hope I’m not imagining Jesse’s.

At least three full breaths pass between us without words. I count mine, and I guess how many he takes because really, I can’t see much beyond the dark centers of his eyes and the top curl of his lip. I wait for him. Even though I’m dizzy and happy and excited, I don’t want to be eager and desperate. I wait for him to move closer…to do something.

I wish for him.

“Would it be okay if I kissed you now?”

About the Author:

Ginger Scott is an Amazon-bestselling and Goodreads Choice Award-nominated author of several young and new adult romances, including Waiting on the Sidelines, Going Long, Blindness, How We Deal With Gravity, This Is Falling, You and Everything After, The Girl I Was Before, Wild Reckless, Wicked Restless, In Your Dreams, The Hard Count, Hold My Breath, and A Boy Like You.

A sucker for a good romance, Ginger’s other passion is sports, and she often blends the two in her stories. (She’s also a sucker for a hot quarterback, catcher, pitcher, point guard…the list goes on.) Ginger has been writing and editing for newspapers, magazines and blogs for more than 15 years. She has told the stories of Olympians, politicians, actors, scientists, cowboys, criminals and towns. For more on her and her work, visit her website at http://www.littlemisswrite.com.

When she's not writing, the odds are high that she's somewhere near a baseball diamond, either watching her son field pop flies like Bryce Harper or cheering on her favorite baseball team, the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ginger lives in Arizona and is married to her college sweetheart whom she met at ASU (fork 'em, Devils).

Social Media Links:

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/GingerScottAuthor

Twitter: @TheGingerScott

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/thegingerscott/

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Website: http://www.littlemisswrite.com

Cover Reveal: DRUMMER GIRL by Ginger Scott

Check out this amazing cover of DRUMMER GIRL by Ginger Scott! Don't forget to add it to your TBR!

Drummer Girl 
by Ginger Scott

Mature YA/New Adult Contemporary Romance
Release Day: July 30, 2019

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2KBZLLn

About the book:

A mature YA/New Adult contemporary rock star romance by Ginger Scott

Arizona Wakefield was a beat without a melody. Living a half-breathing life in a half-finished neighborhood with parents who always wore half-hearted smiles, the high school senior only had one thing that let her color outside her family’s perfectly drawn lines—her drums.

Jesse Barringer was a song without a chorus. The son of a washed-up rock star who’s also one hell of a deadbeat dad, he was given two things from his father—musical genius and a genetic link to the bipolar disorder that drives him mad.

One night in a garage at the end of a cul-de-sac in the middle of a bankrupt California neighborhood, Jesse’s melody found Arizona’s rhythm. An angry boy with storm-colored eyes found a blonde angel in Doc Martens with missing lines in her own story. Where her rhythm stopped, his words took over, and together, they wrote one hell of a story.

** Drummer Girl is a mature YA/New Adult romance that touches on mental health, drug abuse and includes mature sexual situations.

About the Author:

Ginger Scott is an Amazon-bestselling and Goodreads Choice Award-nominated author of several young and new adult romances, including Waiting on the Sidelines, Going Long, Blindness, How We Deal With Gravity, This Is Falling, You and Everything After, The Girl I Was Before, Wild Reckless, Wicked Restless, In Your Dreams, The Hard Count, Hold My Breath, and A Boy Like You.

A sucker for a good romance, Ginger’s other passion is sports, and she often blends the two in her stories. (She’s also a sucker for a hot quarterback, catcher, pitcher, point guard…the list goes on.) Ginger has been writing and editing for newspapers, magazines and blogs for more than 15 years. She has told the stories of Olympians, politicians, actors, scientists, cowboys, criminals and towns. For more on her and her work, visit her website at http://www.littlemisswrite.com.

When she's not writing, the odds are high that she's somewhere near a baseball diamond, either watching her son field pop flies like Bryce Harper or cheering on her favorite baseball team, the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ginger lives in Arizona and is married to her college sweetheart whom she met at ASU (fork 'em, Devils).

Social Media Links:

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/GingerScottAuthor

Twitter: @TheGingerScott

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/thegingerscott/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/GingerScottAuthor

Google: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+GingerScottAuthor/posts

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/GingerScott

Website: http://www.littlemisswrite.com

LUCAS by Jay McLean is FREE!! And a GIVEAWAY!

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Lucas – A Preston Brothers Novel #1

by Jay McLean

AVAILABLE NOW

BLURB

In a sprint, every millisecond counts.  

When you’re waiting for love, those milliseconds can feel like eons.

High school senior Lucas Preston has it all: star of the track team, a scholarship waiting for him, an apartment to himself and a revolving door of girlfriends. He also has an older sister, five younger brothers and a father who relies on him to make sure those brothers don’t kill each other.
His saving grace? Lois “Laney” Sanders, a girl he started to fall in like with when he was just eleven.
A girl who became his best friend, his confidant, his courage.

It took only sixteen clicks and eight seconds for Lucas to realize that his like for Laney had turned into love.
Eight life-changing seconds.
It’s also the exact length of time it took to lose her.


FROM MY REVIEW

"When I first read LUCAS, I was fairly new to Jay McLean’s books, having only read KICK PUSH earlier this year. I've wanted to read more of her books and this new series was the perfect time to jump right in. LUCAS is just the kind of book that I love - a story about young love, first love, filled with friendship and heartbreak and hope for what the future may have in store for them.  

I was entranced by how intertwined their lives were, their families. Their love was overflowing.

What can I say? I LOVED THIS BOOK! It got my heart all twisted up with just the right amount of romance and character growth. I'm excited to read more about the rowdy Preston boys."

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As a kid, Logan Preston was a brat.

Through his teens, he became the bad boy.

Now, at nineteen, no one knows what the hell to expect.

High school dropout, Logan Preston is a

good-for-nothing stoner.

A black sheep.

A disappointment.

The worst Preston Punk of the lot.

At least that’s how everyone in his small town

makes him feel.

But Logan Preston has secrets.

Secrets so dark and so deep below the surface that the only way he can fight them is to stay high, high, high.

He wears cockiness as a mask.

Arrogance as his armor.

Until one girl, one night, asks one life-changing question:

What's beneath the bravado, Logan Preston?

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AUTHOR BIO

Jay McLean is an international best-selling author and full-time reader, writer of New Adult Romance, and most of all, procrastinator. When she's not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her two little boys, playing house and binge watching Netflix.

She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her hurt and make her feel.

Jay lives in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia, in a forever half-done home where music is loud and laughter is louder.

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DARKNESS MATTERS by Jay McLean - Review and Giveaway

DARKNESS MATTERS

by Jay McLean

Publication Date: June 26, 2017

Pages: 200

Source: Author

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US: http://amzn.to/2zqbbIN

UK: http://amzn.to/2zF0ciW

CA: http://amzn.to/2iSeoux

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BLURB

It’s the same old story, really.

Good versus evil.

Heroes versus villains.

Light versus dark.

For two years, college freshman Noah Morgan lived his life somewhere in the middle, fighting darkness and light, always searching for answers to a single question:

Why, Noah, why?

The same three words keep him up at night, struggling for air while gripping a plastic cylinder containing white pills to match the white label with his name printed in ink as deep and dark as his memories—memories that turned him into a recluse.

A shut-in.

An introvert.

Luckily for him, that’s not how the girl next door sees him.

My Thoughts 

Even before I read DARKNESS MATTERS, Jay McLean was quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Her books have so much heart and depth and leave me thinking about them long after I finish them. Now after reading DARKNESS MATTERS, she's a definite go-to author. The writing is exquisite. The tone, the pacing, and her ability to add humor when the story has made my heart and jumbled up mess, made this a book I craved to savor, but was desperate to finish.

I love stories about relationships - not just romantic relationships, but relationships between best friends and siblings. And I especially enjoy stories about male friendships, it's important to express those too when it's not just male bonding, but care giving and compassion and loyalty. DARKNESS MATTERS gives readers all of this.

I liked the quiet way Noah and Andie develop a friendship. She's hesitant, he's observant - and they discover a way to just be, and they quickly become important to each other when neither of them is sure that is what they need or even what they want.

I enjoyed the dual point-of-views, and when the third POV snuck in there, it was unexpected, but I'm glad that we were given that perspective.

Favorite Quotes:

"I see beauty in you, Noah. In how you've dealt with your past. In the way you act, the way you protect, the way you love."

"Say something beautiful."

DARKNESS MATTERS is filled with characters who do a lot of hurting and healing - there are no perfect answers.

I've written this a few times lately that I seriously need to give my heart some rest. Give it time to heal from the books that capture my heart, the books that bring me to tears. They really do take an emotional toll. But they are the books that I'm drawn to. They are the books I WANT to read. We don't always get only the good. We get everything. We get the light and we get the dark. And it all matters. Darkness Matters.

 

GIVEAWAY

Enter to win a signed paperback of Darkness Matters, a $20 Amazon Gift Card or a $10 Amazon Gift Card.

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AUTHOR BIO

Jay McLean is an international best-selling author and full-time reader, writer of New Adult Romance, and most of all, procrastinator. When she's not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her two little boys, playing house and binge watching Netflix.

She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her hurt and make her feel.

Jay lives in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia, in a forever half-done home where music is loud and laughter is louder.

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Review: LUCAS - A Preston Brothers Novel by Jay McLean

LUCAS - A Preston Brothers Novel

by Jay McLean

Publication Date: November 1, 2016

Pages: 354

Source: Author for review

Add to Goodreads

Purchase US: http://amzn.to/2ePnZ2g | UK: http://amzn.to/2eyux71

Blurb

In a sprint, every millisecond counts.

When you're waiting for love, those milliseconds can feel like eons.

High school senior Lucas Preston has it all: star of the track team, a scholarship waiting for him, an apartment to himself and a revolving door of girlfriends. He also has an older sister, five younger brothers and a father who relies on him to make sure those brothers don't kill each other.

His saving grace? Lois "Laney" Sanders, a girl he started to fall in like with when he was just eleven.

A girl who became his best friend, his confidant, his courage.

It took only sixteen clicks and eight seconds for Lucas to realize that his like for Laney had turned into love.

Eight life-changing seconds.

It's also the exact length of time it took to lose her.

My Thoughts

I'm fairly new to Jay McLean’s books, having only read KICK PUSH earlier this year. I've wanted to read more of her books and this new series was the perfect time to jump right in. LUCAS is just the kind of book that I love - a story about young love, first love, filled with friendship and heartbreak and hope for what the future may have in store for them.  

I like that Lucas and Lane are still in high school and getting to know their relationship from an early age. I enjoyed that it was a more mature read with adult situations. It’s not just about the friendship and romance, there is a look at all of the relationships and fears and disappointments and complications that many people go through.

I loved the large family with 7 kids and all with the names beginning with the letter “L” - Lucy, Lucas, Logan, Leo, Liam, Linc, and Lachlan. I found it charming but I did have trouble keeping track Logan and Leo - and their roles within the family. And Lachlan - the youngest, was endearing and added the right amount of humor when the story would get heavy. “Are you sexing?”

It was easy to love Lane’s (Laney, Lois) independent and nurturing nature, and appreciate that she was her own person separate from Lucas. Although, they did compliment each other. They just needed to take the time to get it right.

I was entranced by how intertwined their lives were, their families. Their love was overflowing.

Favorite Laugh Out Loud moment:

Meeting Dumb Name. I couldn't help but crack up EVERY TIME he was referred to as Dumb Name instead of his given name, Garray. And when ever they did call him by Garray, I would call him Dumb Name and then laugh some more.

What can I say? I LOVED THIS BOOK! It got my heart all twisted up with just the right amount of romance and character growth. I'm excited to read more about the rowdy Preston boys and I’m just as excited to go back and McLean’s previous books and discover more of Cameron and Lucy’s story. If other readers are like me and this is one of their first Jay McLean books, they will become addicted and immediately pick up another to read! I’m hooked, for sure.

ADD TO GOODREADS :

http://bit.ly/2aHQK2h

AUTHOR BIO

Jay McLean is an international best-selling author and full-time reader, writer of New Adult Romance, and most of all, procrastinator. When she's not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her two little boys, playing house and binge watching Netflix.

She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her hurt and make her feel.

Jay lives in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia, in a forever half-done home where music is loud and laughter is louder.

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