One Lovely Blog Award


I've been awarded with the 'One Lovely Blog' Award by Avery James Photography! Thanks Crystal for choosing my blog!


By accepting the 'One Lovely Blog' Award, I must also post the Rules of Blog Award Acceptance:

1. Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link.
2. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you've newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.


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Faking It - Jennifer Crusie

Description~

Mural artist Tilda Goodnight is struggling to pay off the mortgage on the family business and keep the Goodnight secrets safely hidden. Juggling her life gets even more complicated when she hides in Clea Lewis's closet and collides with sexy Davy Dempsey. Tilda is in Clea's bedroom to steal back a forged painting; Davy's there to steal Clea's account codes and retrieve the $3 million the larcenous blonde stole from him. Somehow, Tilda finds herself exchanging a mind-blowing kiss with her fellow burglar, and when Davy follows her home and rents a room from her mother, she's forced to deal with the charming con man. Everyone in Tilda's world is pretending to be someone else, including her daydreaming mother, her split-personality sister, and her cross-dressing ex-brother-in-law. All of them, including Tilda and Davy, are Faking It. What will happen when all the secrets are out and everyone knows the truth about everyone else? Will Davy recover his 3 million? Will Tilda recover all the forged paintings and find her true artistic calling? Will Tilda's mother run off to Aruba with a hit man named Ford? And exactly what is the difference between a man labeled a "doughnut" and one who deserves the title "muffin"?

Ok, I'm gonna try to do this as short and painlessly as possible. Let me start out buy saying I LOVE JENNIFER CRUSIE! I really do! I think her books are always entertaining, funny and very sexy! HOWEVER I do believe JC missed the mark on this one.

You start the book out by meeting an artist from childhood Tilda Goodnight. Shes stuck unhappily painting murals because of a family secret hidden in her basement. When some of her secret starts to be reveled she is forced to fall into the "family business" and steal a painting. While doing so she runs into ex-con Davy Dempsey (we met him in Welcome to Temptation) and sparks start to fly while hiding in a closet. They soon find that they need each other to get what they want...Davy his stolen money back and Tilda her paintings. While doing so they slowly start to fall in love. But will their secret from each others past lives be too much to bare?

Me and Wena were talking about this book the other day and we were trying to figure out what went wrong with the story. I think she put it best when she said "There wasn't anything bad about it, but there really wasn't anything good either". So let me get this out...Davy pissed me off in many situations...lets just at one point he told Tilda another woman was great at sex and she sucked and it's not like they were fighting at the time...they were fine! (It was in WAY harsher words that i wouldn't like to type) I had a real love/hate relationship with him. I felt his character didn't have much depth. His only "hang up" was he used to be a con man and it didn't really posses a problem. You know normally each character has their "issues" none of them really did and maybe that was a problem. They didn't have to really overcome anything. This was a very hollow book for me. As for Tilda, I kinda liked her in a way but there again her issues weren't big or horrible. Her relationship with Davy came kinda easy...too easy so there wasn't much struggle which normally makes books funny.

I don't think it would be a very good review without mentioning Tilda's family so I'll do it in a hurry. Her mother drank consistently which is ok by me but if your going to mention it all the time why not have her doing zany drunken things...idk. Her little side story with a hired hit man, Ford probably would've made a more compelling story here. Tilda's niece's story has kinda cute. You watched her go through a few guys dating and all the normal teenage stuff. Now her sister...WIERD!!! She has split personalities and it was just to odd for me to grasp. One of her personalities was dating a guy named Simon and one was a single mom. YA I KNOW?!?!?

So I'd really like to forget this book. I'm not even gonna put a snib bit into this review b/c I don't think its worth it. I hope this wasn't disrespectful to the author b/c I truly love her work. I just think she missed it on this one. I MADE myself finish this book when MANY told me not to. I hate to admit this but I wish I would've listened to them and moved on. It was pretty painful. Poor Baby! lol

I'm onto Lisa Kleypas's Sugar Daddy. I'm really excited because I've never read her before! Wish me luck!

I give this book a total of...



UPDATE: No, I didn't get my ebook reader Friday :o( I'm supposed to get it Tuesday...grrr....

<3monroe

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The Girl Most Likely To... - Susan Donovan

Description~

Sixteen-year-old Kat Cavanaugh hitchhikes out of Persuasion, West Virginia and vows never to return. Who could blame her? She’d just stumbled upon her father’s adulterous affair, found out she was pregnant, got dumped by her boyfriend, and kicked out of her house and school . . . all in a single afternoon. Twenty years have gone by and Kat’s back—gorgeous, rich, and looking for an apology from everyone who’d turned their backs on her. First on that list is Riley Bohland, the boy who broke her heart before she could tell him about the baby. But Kat didn’t count on Riley having his own axe to grind, or that he’d be just as delicious as he was at sixteen. She also didn’t count on her heart opening at the sight of him. When their anger ignites a passion intense enough to burn through two decades of secrets and lies, Kat must question everything she thought she knew about her past. And what about her future? The only place to find the answers may be in Riley’s arms…

I had a friend that was going out of town about a week ago and she borrowed this book from me. Well lets just say I haven't seen it since b/c it's now being passed around the office. Every person I have let borrow this book says they just can't put it down! That's awesome b/c I love getting people into reading! I had a friend who did just that and here I am obsessed and blogging about nothing buy books! lol

Ok back on task...

At 16 Kat gets pregnant by her childhood best friend/boyfriend who happens to have just dumped her. Shes also trying to deal with the fact that she's been shunned from her parents whom have kicked her out of the house. What is she to do with her life? Well what else would you expect any 16 year old to do but to run from her problems. Years later Kat comes back to rub everyone's faces in her accomplishments. Little did she know that it would open up a can of worms and totally blow up in her face.

I have a confession, I often buy books b/c I like the cover! When I seen the front of this book it looked like every other cute Contemp. Romance I normally buy. But when I cracked this baby open I was in for a ride. This book was WAY deeper than I expected it to be. Its a real a page turner...one that was hard to put down! And I must say the last few chapters were shock after shock...and that's always a good sign! ;o)

This book had me from page 1. One of my favorite things about this book is that Donovan isn't one to pussyfoot around on anything! She throws you right in the middle of the drama! Within the first chapter Kat comes back to confront Riley with the shocking news he already knows about! So right there your getting nothing but action between both main characters, which is a great change...b/c I think we've all read those book to where you start skipping ahead to try to find out when the characters will have their first encounter. And from there to the very last page you stay in the mix of the crazy drama!

I really felt that the characters were real and honest with their feeling and reactions to each other. There were very raw feelings put into Riley and Kat's relationship that you could really related to. They didn't totally HATE each other and they didn't act like everything was a-ok! This story made you laugh and even really feel for the characters at times. You even get quite a bit into Riley and his new found sons relationship. I loved watching the two form that special bond between father and son.

This book was awesome! And MAYBE I would've given it 5 stars if it wasnt that I felt a little dropped off at the end. Idk I just felt it could have flowed a bit better...maybe if it had another 5-7 more pages it would've worked for me. Otherwise you need to go get this book! I tell ya I am REALLY starting to love Susan Donovan!

I give this book a total of...



PS.
Mike SO just ordered me the Sony's PRS-505 eBook Reader!!! I hope I get it by Friday! WOOT WOOT! I'll use it about a week and make sure to review it for yall! But ya I'm so excited...I just hope it's easy to use! LOL

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Oh And By The Way...


OMG...like OH MY FREAKING GOSH!!! Why haven't I always watched this show?!? My friend Wena told me I should try out this show out and I wasn't so sure just because I knew they were in high school and you never know how cheesy it can get. I borrowed the first three seasons from my friend L at work and MAN-O-MAN am I addicted. Right now I'm on the 10th episode and wow is it awesome! I'll admit the first show the acting was so so but ya know I think thats with any new show. But it's gotten SO MUCH BETTER! LUVS IT!

I've kinda gotten out of TV Land so please enlighten me...what shows am I totally missing out on? Right now I watch...Grey s Anatomy (although I haven't watched but like 3 episodes of the current season, I know I need to catch up), The Office, American Idol, Glee (a totally new show thats only 1 episode in but its great), and So You Think You Can Dance (I've recently adopted this show into my schedule). So what do you think...what should I watch? Whats good? Do YOU like One Tree Hill???

PS...Like I said...

OH



MY


FREAKING



GOSH


<3 Monroe

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First Comes Marriage - Mary Balough

Description~

The Huxtable quintet tells the stories of three sisters, Margaret, the eldest (At Last Comes Love), Vanessa in the middle (First Comes Marriage), Katherine, the youngest (Then Comes Seduction), their young brother, Stephen (Seducing An Angel), and their second cousin Constantine (title not yet confirmed).

First Comes Marriage is Vanessa and Viscount Lyngate's, story. Vanessa and Elliott dislike each other at first sight and nothing improves on second or third sight. But when it becomes clear that Elliott is about to propose marriage to Margaret simply because he needs a wife and she is a convenient candidate, Vanessa decides to take desperate measures and intervene. Her beloved sister has a strong sense of duty and might well accept the horrid Lord Lyngate for the sake of her family though she is deeply in love with a girlhood sweetheart who is off fighting in the Napoleonic Wars. Vanessa has already had her chance at love with Hedley Dew, to whom she was blissfully married for one year before his death. Now is the time to sacrifice herself for her sister, who has had no real chance at love and happiness at all.

We start our story off meeting the young widow Vanessa Huxtable Dew. She has recently started to come out of mourning and is to attend the Valentine's Day Assembly with the rest of her family. Whispers start to spread like wildfire when the handsome Elliot Wallace, Viscount Lyngate, appears at the assembly and chooses to only dance one dance with one woman. Vanessa. While the two dance Elliot is taken back by how plain and unappealing his partner is. Vanessa's outlook on Elliot is quite the opposite. She thinks he is one of the most glorious creatures there is, even though his face reflects nothing but arrogance. The two are very cross with each other and are glad when the night is over. Vanessa thought he was out of her life for good except when the next day he arrives at their family's homestead with some startling news that soon has them packing to move the family to London. Shortly after their move another turn of events has Elliot and Vanessa getting married.

The plot of the story is the fact that two totally different people have have been forced into a marriage that seems to be doomed to do nothing but fail. This is a classical case of uptight guy meets free spirited and loving girl. I really enjoyed watching Vanessa and Elliot go round and round with each other during their incessant banters. Basically the only thing that they agree with is the AWESOME sex that was taking place just about every night. But is sex alone enough to have a fullfilled marriage? And when Vanessa starts to really fall for Elliot will his feelings reciprocate? Can she make a very unfeeling man like Elliot feel something for her?

I thought this story was pretty unpredictable. Now obviously like in every romance you know what the ending results will pretty much be. Its the journey between the beginning and end that makes this book most appealing. I didn't expect a lot that went on in this story and that right there was a big reason I enjoyed it as much as I did.

I absolutely LOVED Vanessa. She was light, funny, and had a beautiful outlook on life. I also loved her words she spoke as well as her thoughts. I picked this small part out to share with you in hopes that you'll soon try this book out for size. I know I'm glad I did!

She was blessed. What more could she ask for?

His heart?

If one had the moon and the stars, must one be greedy for the sun too?

It seemed that the answer was yes.

She wanted...

Well, she wanted the sun of course.

How very foolish she was.

I give this book a total of...




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Oh And By The Way...

*I feel my readers should get a chance to get to know me...so at least once a week I will post a personal blog that will update you on my life or what I'm feeling at the time! Please feel free to ask any questions and I'll always answer the best I can. Let me know what you think and I hope you enjoy!*

Have you ever just had the urge to write? Even if writing isn't your thing. Your sitting there and maybe you hear a phrase and it catches in your heart and makes you really think...or possibly your reading a great romance and the words are practically gripping at your soul to make you actually feel something...well this is my time, so hear me out.

I had a crap day. And as I was coming home I was stewing over it all. I was prepared to sit down and rip the world a new one. But as I sat down and cleared my mind, wiggled my fingers and got them ready to type I felt nothing but thankfulness. Where the heck did this come from?!? I felt overwhelmed with nothing but peace. I know. Odd huh?!? Well so I take this as a message from the big guy above to let a bit out and share the two great thing I'm so thankful for (beside the Big Man himself)!

MICHAEL LUV'S MONROE


The first think I'm thankful for is my loving husband Michael. When I was 20 I was totally DONE with guys. They were crap to me and i was sick and tired of feeling that I tried more than they did. I remember telling a girl at work that I just KNEW that the man for me wasn't in Crestview, Florida...little did I know he was only 30 miles down up the road! lol Michael and I met through a mutual friend that he worked with at Boeing. Our first date was a group date and we have seen each other EVERY day since then! lol Michael is 5 years older than I am and he swears that if I was any younger he wouldn't have tried to meet me but WHATEVER! Get this...and I know how crazy this sounds so you don't have to tell me...we dated for 9mths, Michael told me of a job in Georgia that he was up for and in my head I was thinking that we would deal with it if it came to that. Well we played around with the idea of getting married because we were pretty sure he would get the job. We talked about going to the courthouse or having a small wedding or maybe even moving then getting married later. Well Mike bought the ring (he didn't think I knew at the time but I worked at his bank...OMG I know totally horrible of me but we shared bank accounts by then...we worked fast lol) so I knew the question was coming. In the back of my mind I was asking myself "Would he really be asking me this soon if he didn't think he may loose me moving to Georgia?". It was a HUGE ordeal in my head...I didn't tell Michael b/c of course he would say yes he would still be asking. Well we found out a few weeks later the job got offered to someone with a military background. No big deal. Mike asked me to marry him a few weeks later in our bedroom of our town home. The next day the job got offered to him! lol To this day I swear that was God letting me know that Michael was the one for me and that whatever state we may end up he loved me then and will continue to love me forever. Mike is my rock. We moved to Georgia not even a month later and got married 9mths after that! We built our first home together and now have been married and living in Georgia for about 3 years! Hes my best friend and a wonderful provider. Ya know some people say "Oh he gets me"...well Michael doesn't all the time and he will admit to that, BUT he excepts me no matter what and that's the most important part.

FRIENDS

I'm not close with my family at all. Getting a bit personal...my dad is absolute crap, I could depend on my online friends more than my mom, and my sister...well were ok, she's 31 and I'm 24...lets just say I'm the big sis in the relationship. Now I am however extremely close with Michales family. They are the family everyone should have. They are a 100% loving and caring family. But before Michael and even now my friends have been my family. I have a few wonderful friends I've made throughout my years and I honestly dont know what I wouldve done without them. Recently I have met an elite few through blogging that have totally brought me alive! I laugh constantly at work with these girls and they totally keep me from pulling out my hair! lol I hope these girls know who they are and know their friendship is truly appriciated! :o) I believe the saying that if you can count your true friends on one hand then your lucky. I believe I am truly blessed to be able to go the the second hand!



PS. AND YOUR AMERICAN IDOL IS...KRIS ALLEN!!!!
Told you he's SUPER delicious Wena ;o)

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True Love and Other Disasters - Rachel Gibson

Description~

Disaster Number One: Men

Hard knocks and hunger taught Faith Duffy not to believe in love. Still, when she married her very wealthy—and very old—husband, she became the perfect wife. And then he went to that big bank in the sky, leaving Faith with lonely nights, a pile of money, and a total mess of a pro hockey team. Heck, Faith doesn't even watch hockey!

Disaster Number Two: Passion

But most of America and half of Canada is watching Ty Savage. His lethal sex appeal and deadly right hook make him the favorite of fans. For most of Ty's life, he's dreamed of winning the Stanley Cup. The last thing he needs is a bimbo messing up his plans.

Disaster Number Three: Love

Faith loathes Ty on sight, but she can't stop thinking about him all day . . . and night. Then a moment of temptation ends with Faith in Ty's bed, and she begins to see there's more to him than sex appeal. Ty discovers there's far more to Faith than beauty and billions. But a relationship with Faith is impossible, and falling in love—that would be a disaster.

What can I say other than I love Rachel Gibson and she is an A= in my book!

Okay, first off I have sort of a "thing" for RG's hockey men: John Kawalsy, Luc Martineau, and now Ty Savage! Her hockey men always have just the right edge to them and yet a softer side once you get to the core. In this book Faith Duffy ( young ex-stripper and Playboy centerfold) inherits her dead husbands hockey team the Seattle Chinooks. At first she is unsure whether she should keep the team or sale them but a run in with her step son pushes Faith to take on the challenge. While learning everything there is to know about running a pro hockey team Faith caught the eye of the team captain Ty Savage. Savage and Faith have a few run-ins that soon lead them into each others arms and beds. Soon they find out that their strong passion for each other is a huge risk for both of their lives. Ty's career and Faiths heart is a stake. What fate will they choose...to end a strong bond for the sacred Stanley Cup or throw everything away for each other? Is it possible to have both?

RG's story of a true love affair is impeccable! You get RG's normal funny characters, lots of sexy talk and a story line to keep you hooked! I was happy to see my favorite RG heroine Jane, from See Jane Score, come back with a small cameo. I absolutely have no doubt that you will love this book. And if you haven't read any of Rachel Gibson's hockey books than shame on you because you truly missing out. This book deserves 4 stars because it is EVERYTHING but a Disaster! I'll leave you with a lil snib bit of the book that will ensure you will be elbowing some peeps to get to the cash register to buy this treasure!

"I think we should all go dancing after dinner," her mother suggested. "Faith was always a good dancer."

Through the linen of her dress, Ty squeezed and she closed her legs around his warm hand. "I have an early morning," he said.

"I'm tired." Faith looked at her mother and yawned. "But you two go ahead. I can take a taxi home."

"I'll take you".

She looked at Ty and said, just above a whisper, "That might be inappropriate."

"The things I'm going to do to you are very inappropriate." He lowered his mouth to her ear.

"You should probably be afraid."

"Are you planning anything illegal?"

"Not the first two or three times." He shrugged.

"I'm not sure aboat the rest."

*DAMN I LOVE CANADIANS!

I give this book a total of...


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My Reading Room

For my Valentines Day present my husband Michael REALLY went out of his way to give me the one thing that every avid reader wants, their own reading room! I decided to share my room with you because I spend most of my "home time" here. The colors and furniture are spot on! He even thought to buy a futon so it could still double as a guest room.

Instead of pictures on the walls I chose to decorate with letters that represent some of my favorite authors. Here is my Leaning Ladder book shelve. The letter 'C' is for one of my two favorite contemporary authors Jennifer Cruise. I love Cruise because she mixes mystery with romance! I have read almost all of her books.

Taking a closer look at the second shelf you'll see a few of my contemporary reads that include: Jennifer Cruise, Sophie Kinsella, and Susan Donovan. I also have Leslie Langtry and Gemma Halliday because I like a touch of mystery in my romances.

On my third shelf I have a few borrowed books that range anywhere from Jane Eyre to The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. On my bottom shelf I have my Harry Potter collection which I have yet to get through and one of my favorite series the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris. I am SO TEAM ERIC! I haven't read the latest book Dead and Gone but I read some spoilers and OMG OMG...that's all I can say!

Beside my bookshelf is where I keep my little laptop. Sammy my cat seems to be checking my blog. ;o)



Walking over to my other wall I have my letter 'G'. I shared this letter with two authors. My first author gets me SO giddy. Its Rachel Gibson! WOOT WOOT! I absolutely love all of her books! In fact I just finished True Love and Other Disasters and it was amazing. It honestly doesn't surprise me because her best books are always the hockey books.

My other 'G' author is Diana Gabaldon. I fell in love with her Outlander series. Jamie and Claire's love is inspiring! The books are SUPER long but to me sometimes its nice to have those characters for a lengthy time.

Also sharing the shelf are the two newest additions to my book collection which are Mary Balough's First Comes Marriage and Lynsay Sands Devil of the Highlands. I can't wait to read them both.

Behind my futon I have a variety of books to talk about. First of all I have to pull your attention to my awesome floor lamp that kinda reminds me of a light tower. Also we have my FSU bears! My hubby went to FSU and we are originally from Florida.

My 'E' stands for Janet Evanovich. I have all her Stephanie Plum books (1-14) which includes her Between-the-Number novels. I also have a signed copy of Plum Lovin' that Mike got me for Valentines Day! And FYI as much as Ranger is a total turn on I am a Cupcake all the way! :o) Some of my favorite books of Janet's are her pre-Plum books which were romances! They are short but very funny and fast paced. You should check them out!

On my other shelf I have a few paranormals. I really enjoy the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs. Its filled with werewolves, vampires, ghosts, and like everything I read, a bit of romance. Next are my Steven King books. I honestly have never read his work and am not sure if it would be my cup of tea but I bought Salem's Lots on an impulse because it had vampires and someone gave me Lisey's Story for free. I'm never one to turn down a free book! I also have one of the Black Dagger Brother books! I loved it and can't wait to continue the series as soon as I can catch up on all my other books. LOL Lastly are my House of Night books by P.C. & Kristin Cast. Don't be put off by these books being under Young Adult. These are really great books!

Lastly is 'M' for Stephanie Meyer. Unfortunately I have loaned out all of her books! In my Meyer collection I have the entire Twilight Saga and her latest The Host. Everyone and their mama has read Twilight so I wont even talk to you about them except to say I am the typical little girl when it comes to them. And yes that is the Twilight Deluxe Blu-Ray DVD set! LOL Now as for The Host...its an awesome books about what its like to feel and to be human. Its a moving book honestly. Dont get thrown by the talk of aliens because its not as Scifi as you think.

And here is my futon...its comfy and ya I have fallen asleep on it many of times! BTW that's my cd player under the bed.

I love this room so much! When I need to get away or want quiet time or just want to write I come in here and it inspires me to no end! What inspires you???

<3 Monroe

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Chosen (House of Night, Book 3) - P.C. and Kristin Cast


Description~

Dark forces are at work at the House of Night and Zoey Redbird's adventures at the school take a mysterious turn. Her best friend, Stevie Rae, is undead and struggling to maintain a grip on her humanity. Zoey finds herself in the very unexpected and rare situation of having three boyfriends. Mix a little bloodlust into the equation and the situation has the potential to spell social disaster. Just when it seems things couldn't get any tougher, vampyres start turning up dead. Really dead. It looks like the People of Faith are tired of living side-by-side with vampyres. But, as Zoey and her friends so often find out, how things appear rarely affects the truth...

Like I've said before, I love reading all sorts of books and even though Romance is my favorite category I love a good Paranormal thrown into the mix. when I came upon this House if Night series I'll say that I was interested but wary by the reading level it was at. These books are at the Young Adult reading level, but I can honestly say if I had kids they would NOT be reading this series. There is talk of drugs, sex and alcohol between these pages and frankly I don't think a kid under the age of 18 needs to read that sort of stuff.

Apart from that I enjoyed this book! This is the third book in the series and the best yet I feel this story is really evolving into a great series. We continue the journey of Zoey Redbird and her faithful friends through their trials and tribulations of becoming adult vampyres. Zoey has many problems in this book. Between juggling three boyfriends, a best friend that's part of the undead dead group running amuck, and a really pissed off High Priestess, it’s just more than she can handle. From page 1 to 307 I was spellbound. Zoey's determination to please her Goddess Nyx is truly marvelous. She is definitely tested in this book and we learn that not everyone is perfect even a "Chosen" one. There were tons of action, deceit and even a morsel of lust in this short novel. I totally recommend it to anyone that loves a bit of the paranormal in their reading to pick this one up.

I give this book a total of...

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~ Welcome to Monroe With A Twist ~



"Romance novels are birthday cake and life is often peanut butter and jelly. I think everyone should have lots of delicious romance novels lying around for those times when the peanut butter of life gets stuck to the roof of your mouth." -Janet Evanovich

My name is Monroe Dawson and I'm a 24 year old aspiring writer from from Florida. I now live in Georgia with my husband Michael where I work as an Administrative Assistant for a Commercial Construction Company. I absolutely love to read and discuss a a wide variety of books. I also enjoy writing! I have a passion for contemporary romances and hope to be successful in that field someday. I want this blog to be a place where we can discuss both books and writing. Are you reading a book that is absolutely delicious or possibly one that should be banned from every library? If so, I want to know about it! Or, maybe you're trying to write your first novel but can't seem to get started and need a bit of advice. Well here is the place to be. I also want this blog to be a space where you can submit any short stories or book reviews of your own. Please feel free to respectfully speak your mind.

<3 Monroe


Any questions or advice how to make my blog better? Or maybe you just want to wish me luck! Feel free to email me at monroe.dawson09@gmail.com

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Rowena is the Best!

Blah blah blah, Rowena is the best and Monroe knows this! LOL.

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