Review: Lost Without You

Lost Without You is the newly released final book in a great romance series by Heather Thurmeier. I read and loved the first two novels, Falling for You and Stuck on You (links lead to reviews), and couldn't wait to see how the series turned out!

Here's the synopsis:

Zoe Oliver never wanted to be on another reality TV show… until Chip Cormack made an offer too good to refuse. He’s guaranteed her a payday this time and a chance to redeem herself in America’s eyes. But Zoe worries she won’t be able to focus as her desire for Chip grows and her strength to resist him weakens. When she learns she’ll be roughing it in the woods with Chip and without luxuries like indoor plumbing and electricity, she’s instantly on edge, feeling naked and terrified that her scars will be exposed and her secrets revealed. When Zoe’s past turns up on the show, she fears she’ll lose not only the life she’s sacrificed everything else to have, but also the affections of the only man she’s ever trusted with her heart.

The thing that makes this series different than a lot of other romance books is the setting. Each novel takes place during a reality show. How fun is that? The final book features a Survivor-esque show that really pushes the contestants to the limits. What makes it different than the other books is that Zoe, the heroine of book three, isn't actually a contestant, she's the host. The show still plays a large part in the story as she does have to watch each challenge and even participate in small ways (I don't want to think too much about the cooking she had to taste during one challenge). This made things fun and it complemented the other part of the story - the romance!

I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about Chip and Zoe getting together. I pictured him as a pretentious and snobby (redundant?) producer and I wasn't sure if I wanted to read about him. Turns out I was wrong about Chip. As soon as the book started I was assured that he was absolutely crazy about Zoe and had been trying to hide those feelings for years. I liked that Thurmeier touched on how he had changed which helped reconcile the two Chips I had in my head. As I read on, I realized that the relationship between Zoe and Chip totally made sense and I found myself rooting for them. I could see that they had great chemistry. Of course, the scene in the waterfall didn't hurt matters! ;)

I had told Heather that I couldn't wait to read the final book because I wanted to get the full story about Zoe's past. We got hints of it in the second book, Stuck on You, and that helped me see that Zoe wasn't the huge bitch that I thought she was. She's just intensely guarded. That impression was confirmed as I read this book. I don't want to give anything away for those who haven't read the previous two books but just know that Zoe really is a good person. She was sexy, sarcastic, and real and I really loved reading her story.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading Lost Without You. Heather Thurmeier did a great job of sharing Zoe's story and wrapping up the series. I'm sad to see these characters go but I'm happy they all got the endings they deserved.

Happy reading! :)

*A copy of this novel was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review*

Guest Post: Heather Thurmeier

I am so happy to have author Heather Thurmeier on the blog today with a fabulous guest post. I reviewed her novel Stuck on You the other day, the review is here if you missed it, and I absolutely loved it. As I mentioned in my review, I enjoyed that it played on the popular reality TV show The Amazing Race. The first novel in this series, Falling for You, did a similar thing with the show The Bachelor. While I don't watch The Amazing Race, I really like the idea of it and thought it was fabulous that Heather had her fictional TV show feature geocaching. Don't know what that means? Don't worry - Heather explains in her post! Enjoy!

Geo-What-Now??

Geocaching (pronounced geo-cash-ing) is a giant, worldwide treasure hunt. Using a handheld GPS unit—or cell phone with app—you look for caches based on their longitude and latitude coordinates. The cache you’re looking for might be as tiny as an acorn (called a nano-cache) or as big as a 5-gallon pail. Inside each cache will be a logbook where you can record that you’ve been there and the date of your find. The larger caches often have other things inside them as well like toys for the kids to take, trackable items you can take and leave at another cache, and any number of other things. It’s great fun and very satisfying when you follow that little GPS arrow all the way to the cache and find it! And it’s always a surprise about what you’ll find inside. My kids love going ‘treasure hunting!’

In my novel, Stuck on You, the characters go on a reality TV show inspired by The Amazing Race. But I wanted to make it different in a few ways. So I kept my contestants local to the New York Hudson Valley area and I made them have to geocache to find prizes and accumulate points to eventually win the ultimate grand prize at the end of the show.  I had so much fun thinking of different places and ways I could hide these caches to make my contestants work to find them. And let me just say, they got into some pretty interesting—ahem—and steamy situations while searching for caches.

For the next quarter mile, they walked in silence following the arrow of the GPS. A few more minutes and they should reach the cache. Paige leaned in closer to the unit, watching the distance on the screen decreasing. Ten more feet.
The ground fell away beneath her and she was suddenly on her back, sliding down a very bumpy surface. After a short slide, she came to a stop, staring up at the canopy of trees.
Ouch.
Footsteps pounded down the slope after her then Miles was down on his knees in the dirt beside her.
Well hello there, Mr. Muscles. Let’s get dirty together.
The image of getting dirty in the forest with Miles was a little more sex kitten than her usual train of thought. Did I hit my head on the way down?
Or maybe it was the influence of the super hot, super built man hovering over her with concern in his eyes that caused the shift in her mental state.
“Are you okay?” Miles asked, touching the side of her face and turning her head first one direction and then the other. Her eyes never left his.
“I’m fine. Just dirty—muddy,” she clarified. Not that he could read her mind, but still. “I’ll get up now.”
“Let me help you,” he said, standing over her and wrapping his large hands around her upper arms, pulling her up to stand in front of him. His hands dropped to her waist and she found hers groping his chest again. Seemed she couldn’t keep her hands off of him. Not that the rest of her complained in the least.
“Thanks,” she whispered, looking up to meet his gaze. The mix of concern and... something else made her breath hitch in her throat. Damn.
“My pleasure.”
Her feet went out from under her again, but this time she didn’t slide down the slope. Possibly because she’d managed to drag Miles down to the ground with her. Perhaps his body weight pressing her into the soft dirt was enough to stop her from going anywhere.
Definitely every inch of his tall, muscular body against hers was enough to cause the lightheadedness she now felt.
Or possibly the lightheadedness could be from his leg pressing against the junction of her thighs. He’d managed to anchor them both to the ground as she straddled his leg. Yes, that could cause lightheadedness to hit full force.
As could the length of something else currently pressing into her.
Either he suddenly had less blood traveling to his brain or he’d managed to shove a tree branch in his pocket on the way down the hill. A very large tree branch.

Geocaching with Miles sounds pretty fun, doesn’t it? Now I can’t guarantee you’ll have the same results as Paige, but geocaching with your friends and family is always a good way to get outside and enjoy nature together!

Author Bio:

Heather Thurmeier is a lover of strawberry margaritas, a hater of spiders, and a reality TV junkie. Her passion is contemporary romance—writing stories filled with laugh out loud moments, uber-hunky heroes, sassy heroines, and always a happily ever after. Author of romantic comedies: Meadow Ridge Romance series, Bunny Hills and Bikinis, and the Reality TV Romance trilogy. You can find out more about Heather's books, news and giveaways by visiting her blog: heatherthurmeier.com 

Just Finished: Stuck on You

A couple of months ago I reviewed Heather Thurmeier's novel Falling for You and I just loved it (review is here if you missed it). I was so happy when Heather contacted me to review the second novel in this series, Stuck on You - especially because I think I loved this one even more!

Here's the synopsis:

If being forced to team up with reality TV’s favorite bad girl wasn’t enough, falling for her brother might just make this reality show a real nightmare.
Paige Anderson agrees to be on a new reality show called Treasure Trekkers, a show where contestants use handheld GPS units to find hidden caches filled with prizes, with her good friend Cassidy. But when Cassidy is unable to compete, Chip Cormack, the show’s producer, steps in with a last-minute replacement to be Paige’s partner—Zoe Oliver, reality TV’s favorite bad girl.
Jack Miles (aka Miles) is a mountain climber with the body to prove it. Miles convinced his climbing partner Ben to come on the show with him for one reason—to prove to Ben that they can still hike together, regardless of the fact that Ben lost his foot in a tragic accident. Miles isn’t about to let anything get in his way of winning—not even beautiful Paige.
But when Miles and Paige are thrown into an alliance with their teammates, working closely together leads to more than just good strategy. Can Paige steal Miles’ heart while surviving Zoe long enough to win the game?

This was such a fun premise. I love the reality show focus in this series and I would definitely watch Treasure Trekkers. I was familiar with geocaching before reading this book so I was immediately interested in how the show would play out. Of course, the show isn't the main part of the story, it is a romance novel after all!

And what a romance it was! I loved Paige and Miles and was totally rooting for them through the entire book. Even though Paige was a bit of a twit when she was following Zoe's instructions to wear stilettos while competing (OK, a major twit...what was she thinking? Ack!), you could still tell that she was a really likeable girl. I knew the two of them would eventually get together but that didn't make the build up any less fun to read.

You know when you meet a character in the first and/or second book of a series and you just really dislike her? And worry because the following book will feature said character? I felt like this about Zoe. She is...well, she's a bitch. At least, she starts out that way. We met her in Falling for You when she was competing in The One (a Bachelor-esque show) with Paige and Cassidy and then she pops up again in Stuck on You. I really disliked her. I grumbled and cursed and then...she started to grow on me. Let me tell you I was quite surprised! Heather wrote Zoe in such a way that, as I told her, made it OK for the reader to like her. You honestly go into this book disliking her and if the subtle changes in Zoe hadn't been written well, I would not have been OK with how things ended with her and where they'll go in the third book. Let me compare it to another well known chick lit character - Darcy from Emily Giffin's Something Borrowed and Something Blue. Raise your hand if you disliked Darcy in SOBO. Me too! Were you worried when you realized book two was all about her? Yep, I was too. Did it surprise you when you actually quite liked her by the end of the second book? You guessed it, I was too. Heather has also hinted at a secret in Zoe's past that may explain why she is the way she is and I can't wait to find out exactly what that is. Wow. I just realized this was a very long description of my dislike turning to like of Zoe. Obviously I'm looking forward to book three!

Overall, Stuck on You by Heather Thurmeier was a great read. It was sweet, fun, and a little sexy. I definitely encourage chick lit and romance fans to give this one a read. Especially if you enjoy reality shows as well! I will now wait (im)patiently for book three, Lost Without You, to be released...come on July!

Happy reading :)

*A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review*

Author Interview: Heather Thurmeier

Today is my last post for the Falling for You tour organized by CLP Blog Tours! So far I've already reviewed  Heather Thurmeier's novel (loved it!) and she wrote a great guest post for the blog yesterday. Today's treat is an interview with the lovely Heather! Enjoy :)

Favourite movie?

Oh, so, so hard to pick just one. So here’s my current top 5:

Die Hard

Armageddon

40-Year-Old Virgin

Tommy Boy

The Notebook

Favourite author/book?

OMG, this is like picking a favorite child. Again, you get my top 5:

Jill Shalvis’ Lucky Harbor series

Karen Marie Moning’s Fever series

Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook

JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series

**I'm actually going to stop at the top 4 instead because I think there are way too many books/series/authors that could be my number 5.

Favourite (or dream) travel destination?

Paris. I went once with my husband and we have the best week ever! We really want to go back with our girls.

Favourite indulgence (food to eat, store to shop in, etc.)?

Books. Lots and lots of books. Was there supposed to be another answer? Handbags. I really love handbags. I don’t own that many of them (regardless of what hubs says!) but I covet many. It doesn't matter what size or shape you are, a new handbag always fits!

Favourite reality TV show?
I have a top 3 (and a whole bunch of other that I love *almost* as much!):

The Amazing Race

Survivor

Bachelor/Bachelorette

What made you want to write romances?

I don’t know. I wanted to write a book for a long time, but never thought I could. I didn't have an idea for a book, just a desire to write one. Then one day an idea came to me, and it sort of festered in my brain for a while, taking shape. When I finally thought I had an overall idea and characters come together, I couldn't wait to write it. It just so happened to be a romance! I'm not surprised really. I love to watch romantic comedies, I love to read romance and chick lit, and I'm a huge romantic in real life!

Do you ever find characteristics of yourself or your friends and family creeping into your characters?

Yes! I think there is a little piece of me in every single one of my characters in some way or another. None of my characters are based entirely off of people I know in real life… that would be awkward! But each character has a little trait from someone I know, or in most cases, from many people I know.

What is your writing process like? Do you have a favourite place or time of day to write?

I write mostly in the morning and early afternoon while the kids are at school and the house is quiet. I find I'm very motivated in the morning to get my word count in and I usually have lots of energy to sit and focus on writing for a few hours. Once the kids come home, it gets harder to focus because they need a lot of attention. And after they go to bed, I'm beat! I get very little to nothing done in the evenings!

What’s your favourite thing about being an author?

I have two answers to this. First, I love that being an author allows me to set my own schedule. I like working as much or as little as my family life allows. It great to be able to work and still be home with my kids after school, to run them to activities and take them for playdates. And I love being able to do the job I love from the comfort of my home.  Secondly, I LOVE creating characters and telling their stories. It’s such a good feeling to be able to put down on paper these stories I have in my head and to have people actually read my books and enjoy them! I didn't realize how fulfilling this career would be when I started my first book, but every time I finish a book it gives me a sense of accomplishment I've never felt any other way. Being an author is incredibly rewarding and satisfying. I can’t imagine doing anything else as a career and I feel blessed that this is my job.

What kinds of things do you like to do when you’re not writing?

When I'm not writing I like spending time with my family and friends. We enjoy going to movies, hiking, bike riding, and playing video games. One of our favorite outdoor activities is geocaching. We use a handheld GPS unit and a set of longitude and latitude coordinates to find hidden ‘caches’. Caches are containers that people hide and inside is always a logbook we sign with our geocaching name and usually there are other little trinkets inside too. Sometimes there are tiny toys for the kids that they can take, and sometimes we bring little things with us to leave in the cache as well. The kids call it treasure hunting! The second book in my reality TV romance trilogy is called Stuck on You and it’s a reality show loosely based on The Amazing Race but with a geocaching twist! I can't wait to see what readers think of it! 

Guest Post: Heather Thurmeier

As promised, today I have a guest post from the lovely Heather Thurmeier as part of the CLP Blog Tour for her new novel Falling for You. If you read my review from the other day, you'd know that this book features a show that is similar to The Bachelor so I wondered what her inspiration was for her trilogy and what it is about reality TV that we love so much. I hope you all enjoy this post as much as I did! A big thank you to Heather for writing this post. Stay tuned for an interview with Heather coming up on the blog tomorrow!

Hi, Kaley! Thank you so much for having me here today to chat about my ridiculous love for all things reality TV and especially The Bachelor/Bachelorette!

What is it I love so much about those shows that I was inspired to base a romance novel on the idea of a reality TV show cast and crew? Ah, so many things!

First, I love the drama of the show. I know, it’s awful, but I do. I love watching the drama between contestants each week. Sometimes there’s even drama between the contestants and the bachelor/bachelorette! I love to see the daggers get thrown as contestants clash. Tensions run high on these show and it almost always results in memorable TV moments!

Second, I love the challenges and dates! I love to watch each week to find out what crazy things the contestants have to do next. I love when they do something exciting like bungee jumping or rock climbing. I’m always amazed when contestants who are scared face their fears and do the challenge! The only challenges or dates that I don’t like are the ones where the contestants have to act or sing. I think it’s kinda cruel and unusual punishment to put them through that in such a publically humiliating way! And one of my favorite things to watch is when the Bachelor/Bachelorette takes a contestant on a fabulous date that would never happen in real life. Maybe they get whisked off in a helicopter to some remote island for snorkeling with dolphins and a sunset dinner on a private yacht. Or maybe they hike up the side of a mountain and have a picnic in the crater of a dormant volcano. Whatever they do, these dates are always unbelievable and I love to see what they’ll do next!

Last, I love to watch romance blossom. I love to watch as those initial sparks of attraction ignite. And when they start to come together as a couple, opening up to each other and sharing pieces of their lives with someone they just met… it just makes me happy! Is there anything better than watching two people fall in love? No, probably not. Well, maybe that’s not entirely true. I think I like reading about two people falling in love even more! You can read all about Cassidy falling in love in FALLING FOR YOU, but she may not fall in love with who you think!

CLP Blog Tour: Falling for You

Welcome to my stop on the Falling for You blog tour! I'm so glad I decided to take part in the CLP Blog Tour for Heather Thurmeier's latest novel. I loved it!

Here's the synopsis:

Newly single Cassidy Quinn is thrilled to be a contestant on the new reality dating show, The One.
But her excitement turns to horror when the gorgeous bachelor turns out to be her ex-boyfriend. Seeing Brad again makes Cassidy realize she might not be as “over him” as she thought—and then she meets hunky cameraman Evan Burke.
After watching his brother lose his wife in a tragic accident, Evan vows never to fall in love. But following Cassidy around as her personal cameraman makes him question his decision, and resisting her gets harder with every sunbathing, bikini-wearing day.
Cassidy and Evan begin a forbidden affair while her ex-boyfriend tries to win her heart back one groping, awkward moment at a time. If Cassidy can manage to stop falling off horses (literally), stop falling onto her ex-boyfriend, the bachelor (yes, literally), and stop falling in love with backstage playboy Evan, she might still make it through the show without becoming a tabloid sensation.
But soon Cassidy must choose between the ex who broke her heart and the cameraman who might never love her back. For Cassidy, this reality show just got real.

I don't watch a lot of reality TV but the franchise I do watch is The Bachelor/Bachelorette (I draw the line at The Bachelor Pad) so it was a lot of fun to read this novel. I really liked the "behind the scenes" sort of look I got at a similar reality show. Even though I know Thurmeier essentially made up the show, she would have done some research so it was a believable story. As believable as novels and "reality" TV is, of course (and that's not a knock at the book!) :) I watch these shows for the outlandish dates and to see if the contestants can actually find love. This novel was that and so much more. Reading about Brad and the other girls was hilarious - and just what I imagine those shows to actually be like.

I really liked Cassidy. She was a spunky girl and it was quite amusing to read about her adventure as a reality show contestant. I couldn't believe she had ever been with Brad. He was a bit of a...let's call him a twit, shall we? :) Evan, on the other hand, was delightful and their romance was so much fun to read. It was a lot steamier than I expected - an added bonus!

I am so excited that this is a series. The next book, Stuck on You, features Paige, another one of the girls on The One with Cassidy. She was such a sweet character and I really can't wait to read more about her - and find out what Cassidy and Evan are up to.

Even though Falling for You is more of a contemporary romance, I think chick lit lovers would really enjoy it as well. Heather Thurmeier is now one of the authors I stay up to date on because I've now enjoyed two of her novels. I can't wait to read the second book in her reality TV series! Stay tuned for a guest post from Heather and an interview with her coming up in the next couple of days!

Happy reading :)

Just Finished: Bunny Hills and Bikinis

Bunny Hills and Bikinis by Heather Thurmeier was a fun and steamy romantic story. I really enjoyed reading this novel!

Here's the synopsis:

Sunny California? Not so much. Amelia's stuck at the office retreat in frickin' Lake Tahoe with a grabby colleague who thinks he's God's gift to women. At least the workshop presenter is super hot... if only she can get him to take her from the bunny hill to the bedroom.
Amelia Brooks agrees to a weekend retreat in California, thinking it will be held in sunny Malibu only to find out she's stuck in chilly Lake Tahoe for four long days--just what a girl from Minnesota wants to hear in the middle of winter. Now instead of wiggling her toes in the sand, her feet are squeezed into her new manufactured-by-Satan-himself-uncomfortable boots. If that's not enough, Amelia's obnoxious colleague William has decided this is the weekend they'll finally be together and he won't keep his thoughts--or his hands--to himself.
Amelia's ready to kick off those boots and peel off her wooly sweater once she meets Nate Miller--the workshop's hunky presenter. But Nate's not ready to settle down. He's seen his workshop buddies fall in love then fall out of the running for being promoted to the big city workshop circuit and he's not about to let that happen to his life's dream--until he gets involved with Amelia. Now he's not so sure he can walk away at the end of the weekend with his heart intact and his promotion in hand.
Now Amelia's got four days to stave off William's persistent advances long enough to fall in love with Nate and possibly...learn to ski the bunny hill.

As fun as this story was, I found myself annoyed with Amelia at times. I know conflict makes a story more interesting but in this case the conflict with the aforementioned grabby colleague sort of made me...well, almost dislike Amelia. Her colleague, William, is so persistent that it's bordering on harassment. Amelia doesn't want to do anything because she doesn't want to hurt his feelings or subject everyone in the office to sexual harassment safety videos. So instead, she just laughs it off and figures that he'll eventually get the hint. Guess what? He doesn't. He's all over her at this conference and she doesn't stop it. It gets to the point where other attendees believe they're actually together! It was also frustrating because she considers herself a strong woman who doesn't let herself get pushed around except that was exactly what was happening.

While the above issue was a bit difficult to get over, I still found myself enjoying Amelia and Nate's romance. It took them some time to finally get together and it was fun to read about the confusion and doubts each of them had. The book sort of switched perspectives between Nate and Amelia so I got to read about what Amelia thought, her first impression of Nate, and the absolutely hilarious incident that occurs when they first meet. She's mortified, but I could then read that Nate loved it and was incredibly intrigued by her. Their romance was sweet and steamy and I was rooting for a happily ever after for the two of them.

After reading Bunny Hills and Bikinis I will definitely be on the lookout for Heather Thurmeier's other novels. I loved this quick read (devoured it in a single day!) and recommend it to anyone looking for a fun romance.

Happy reading! :)

*I received a copy of this novel from the author in exchange for an honest review.