When Life Gives You Lululemons by Lauren Weisberger

New York Times bestselling author Lauren Weisberger returns with a novel starring one of her favorite characters from The Devil Wears Prada—Emily Charlton, first assistant to Miranda Priestly, now a highly successful image consultant who’s just landed the client of a lifetime.

Welcome to Greenwich, CT, where the lawns and the women are perfectly manicured, the Tito’s and sodas are extra strong, and everyone has something to say about the infamous new neighbor.

Let’s be clear: Emily Charlton, Miranda Priestly’s ex-assistant, does not do the suburbs. She’s working in Hollywood as an image consultant to the stars, but recently, Emily’s lost a few clients. She’s hopeless with social media. The new guard is nipping at her heels. She needs a big opportunity, and she needs it now.

Karolina Hartwell is as A-list as they come. She’s the former face of L’Oreal. A mega-supermodel recognized the world over. And now, the gorgeous wife of the newly elected senator from New York, Graham, who also has his eye on the presidency. It’s all very Kennedy-esque, right down to the public philandering and Karolina’s arrest for a DUI—with a Suburban full of other people’s children.

Miriam is the link between them. Until recently she was a partner at one of Manhattan’s most prestigious law firms. But when Miriam moves to Greenwich and takes time off to spend with her children, she never could have predicted that being stay-at-home mom in an uber-wealthy town could have more pitfalls than a stressful legal career. 

Emily, Karolina, and Miriam make an unlikely trio, but they desperately need each other. Together, they’ll navigate the social landmines of life in America’s favorite suburb on steroids, revealing the truths—and the lies—that simmer just below the glittering surface. With her signature biting style, Lauren Weisberger offers a dazzling look into another sexy, over-the-top world, where nothing is as it appears.

Emily Charlton is baccccck and this time, we get to see her view on motherhood and suburbia. Emily's life is at a fork--her career is on the fritz and she doesn't know what her next steps are going to be. I loved the ladies that were brought into this book--Karolina, an ex-Victoria Secret model and wife of a Senator who's been pulled into the middle of a messy political scandal, and the mutual friend, Miriam, a former high-power attorney who traded in the fast-paced NYC lifestyle to create a life for her husband and child in suburbia. Brought together by drama, this book is full of all the ridiculous never-in-my-lifetime dramas that make you laugh and cry. As far-fetched as a lot of it seems, there's a sense of relate-ability. Perhaps I'm just approaching middle-aged complacency... Enjoyable read for anyone looking for some laughs  and an easy read (even if you aren't a Devil Wears Prada fan).

Where the Sea Takes Me by Heidi R. Kling

For Sienna Jones, the last two years have felt like two lifetimes. 

Now, she’s finally starting to move on, diving headfirst into humanitarian missions with Team Hope, schoolwork, and maybe sort of even love. 

Things are looking up.

But then he arrives on her doorstep, the boy she left behind, and the sight of him shakes Sienna to the core.

Sparks fly. It's like no time has passed since she left him on the beach two years ago. Now she's torn between the new life she’s fought so hard to build, and the possibility of one she thought she’d never have. 

When they're both invited to join Team Hope on a mission in Cambodia, they jump at the chance to help. But when they lose their group and maybe each other, Sienna’s forced to make an impossible choice... and say goodbye to someone she loves one last time.

A different kind of story in the sense that it ties in and brings to light some current events/social issues not normally touched upon in your "usual read". It was a welcome change, yet, at the same time makes you a bit sad that there are still these issues in the world. Not having read the first book in this series, I jump into the story where Sienna is finally starting to let go of a life-changing fling she had with a boy she met in Indonesia two years ago. That is, until he suddenly reappears in her life, in HER world (back home in the states). They embark on another adventure, this time to Cambodia, where they are faced with a whole new beast--the sex trafficking industry. The two take on this whole new world and a second chance at their relationship in this emotionally packed tale. Their second chance story was so intense, I'm quite interested in reading their original story! Where the Sea Takes Me is a good read for those who are bored of the meet-cute-happily-ever-after cycle and are looking for something a little more without taking too much of the romance out of the equation!

Blog Tour: Nasty by R.L. Kenderson

Piper Stevens had already met—and lost—the love of her life. When she buried her husband, she buried her chance for a happily ever after…but also found a shoulder to lean on in Nate.

As a commitment-phobe womanizer, Nate Hall has never had a female as a friend, but he made a promise to his buddy before he passed. Take care of Piper.

And these days?  He can’t imagine his life without her.

Now, a year later, things Piper thought were long gone are beginning to come back.

Like her previously healthy libido.

Except she can't picture dating someone in her husband's place, nor can she sleep with a stranger either.

So, she turns to Nate. After all, he's the perfect choice. He's her friend but also a player. He cares about her but they'll never fall in love…and she won’t get hurt. Not like she did when she lost her husband.

But can two friends give their bodies without involving their hearts and things turning nasty?

Nasty is available for purchase:

What a position Nate was put into by his late friend. With his dying breath, Piper's husband asks his friend, Nate, to take care of his wife. So that's exactly what he did. He situated himself in Piper's life in a way that she needed--he was her rock, her shoulder to cry on and, eventually, her best friend. The fact that they both start to become aware of a mutual attraction to each other just makes the story that much more interesting. The internal conflict the two of them have is real and their emotional battles with themselves and with others really pull you into their story. A great read, definitely recommended and interested in reading the others in this series if they're anything like this one!

Excerpt

Piper and Jordan had moved to the area in January the previous year, and when they had first moved, it had been all about getting situated. Jordan had settled into his new job while Piper had to search for her own. Then, before she had known it, it had been May, and she was a widow.

After that had come his funeral and sorting out all the paperwork after someone passed, all while trying to deal with grief. For a while, the only people Piper had seen outside of work were her mom and Nate. She had just wanted to be left alone. Socializing took too much energy.

But she’d slowly started coming back to life a few months ago, and that was when Nate had really started bringing his friends around. She knew he’d been afraid that she’d be lonely with no family in the area. She felt like she was almost back to normal. Well, her new normal because she was never going to be the same person she had been before Jordan passed away.

And, now, she was grateful that Nate had introduced her to Elise. The two of them got along great, and while Nate was her best friend, sometimes, a lady just needed some girl time. They still didn’t know each other that well, but Piper hoped that could change.

Nate and Luke burst through the front door, shirtless, sweaty, and laughing. They went straight to the food without a word to either of the women and dug in like they hadn’t eaten for a week. Neither of them bothered to sit either; both stood on the other side of the counter.

“I apologize for my husband’s table manners—or lack thereof,” Elise said.

Luke looked up from stuffing his face. “Wha—” he said around a mouthful of food, his brown eyes gleaming with humor.

“You’re a pig,” Elise said.

Nate nestled in the corner of the counter and laughed.

Luke swallowed and smiled. “But I’m your pig.”

Elise shook her head and rolled her eyes, but Piper saw she was hiding a smile.

“Apologies, Piper,” Luke said. “I’m hungry.”

Elise turned to Piper. “Do you care if I get a glass of water?”

Piper jumped from the stool, feeling like a terrible hostess. “Oh my God, I’m sorry.”

“No, you don’t have to get up,” Elise protested, also rising from her seat.

“Yes, I do. My mother would pass out from shame if I didn’t take care of my company.”

Elise sat back down and laughed. “I understand.”

She looked around to the two guys. “Water okay with you guys, too?” she asked as she walked around to Nate and Luke’s side.

“I can get my own, you know,” Nate said.

It was true. He wasn’t really a guest in her home anymore. He raided her fridge whenever he was hungry and helped himself to whatever he needed without asking anymore.

“That’s okay,” she said as she opened the cupboard and reached up for the glasses.

But Nate went for them at the same time she did. As he reached from behind her, she felt his naked chest against her back. A tingle went down her spine, straight to her belly, and she dropped her hands to the counter as she tried to fight a slight tremor.

Apparently, her libido hadn’t died with Jordan. It had just gone dormant. And she didn’t know what to do with it if it was coming back.

About the Author

R.L. Kenderson is two best friends writing under one name. 

Renae has always loved reading, and in third grade, she wrote her first poem where she learned she might have a knack for this writing thing. Lara remembers sneaking her grandmother’s Harlequin novels when she was probably too young to be reading them, and since then, she knew she wanted to write her own.

When they met in college, they bonded over their love of reading and the TV show Charmed. What really spiced up their friendship was when Lara introduced Renae to romance novels. When they discovered their first vampire romance, they knew there would always be a special place in their hearts for paranormal romance. After being unable to find certain storylines and characteristics they wanted to read about in the hundreds of books they consumed, they decided to write their own.

One lives in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area and the other in the Kansas City area where they’re a sonographer/stay-at-home mom/wife and pharmacist/mother by day, and together they’re a sexy author by night. They communicate through phone, email, and whole lot of messaging.

You can find them at http://www.rlkenderson.com, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter, and Goodreads. Join their Facebook Reader Group. Or you can email them at rlkenderson@rlkenderson.com, or sign up for their newsletter here. They always love hearing from their readers.

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