Blog Tour: Reaction by Jessica Roberts (Review + Giveaway)

Reaction by Jessica Roberts

You can find my review of Reflection here, along with a summary, cover, and Goodreads link.

Reaction (Reflection #2) by Jessica Roberts

Release Date: November 6, 2012 (S/P)

Format: e-book

Pages: 231 

Book Description from Goodreads:

Harmony…  

I’ve previously had that in my life, but only once, briefly, a while ago.  It was during the time I’d started my first year of college.  My own apartment, a new old car, and a life free of deadbeat stepfathers, all of which was fulfilling enough.  But if it wasn’t, I also had a best friend, soul mate, and boyfriend all in one.  Yes, life was near perfect.

 But one stormy night can change everything…

 For many months I rested in a prolonged sleep, fighting for my life.  Well, more than fighting for it, also dreaming of it.  Dreaming of him.  Thank goodness, the dream is over and I’m back in the real world now.  And all I want is for everything to return to the way it was.  But nothing’s the same; most of all, us.

 Once again, I find myself at the crossroads of a ruthless battle, this time not for life, but love.  Do I fight for the guy I twice fell for, or do I let her take him away?

About the author:

Jessica Roberts grew up in the San Francisco, California Bay Area where she spent most of her time playing sports alongside her six siblings. She was crowned Miss Teen California her senior year of high school, and went on to Brigham Young University where she graduated in Human Development. Her love of family, church, writing, athletics, and singing and dancing keeps her life busy and fulfilled. She currently resides in Utah with her husband and three children.

Connect with Jessica here:

Blog: http://www.jessicarobertsauthor.blogspot.com/

Twitter: @JRobertsAuthor

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-Roberts/174139906035619

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/688989.Jessica_Roberts

Review:

After really loving Reflection, I was so eager to read more. The cliffhanger at the end of the first book drove me crazy, so I was super excited to be able to participate in this blog tour.

And guys, you have to read this second book.

I’m being honest when I say that I loved Reaction even more than I loved Reflection. Heather has finally awoken from her coma, and she’s back in the real world now. But three years have passed since she’s talked with any of her friends (or him) and she has no idea how their lives have changed while hers has stayed the same.

Boy, have their lives changed.

She’s come into the picture, and it changes everything Heather and Nick ever had. Heather will have to choose between fighting for what she believes is still hers and letting him go. After all they’ve been through, after three years of dreaming about him, will she have to walk away?

If you read my review of Reflection, you’ll remember (or maybe you won’t…haha excuse my bad pun) that I thought the plot was a little slow. Not so with Reaction. I felt like it was more fast-paced, with more climaxes and twists than Reflection had. The romance was more intense, too. Love triangles usually have that effect. I felt I got to know Heather even more, as if her character was delved into more than it was in Reflection. We also get to see more vulnerability in Nick, which I loved.

There were a lot of instances of Heather remembering the time she had with Nick and all the things they did. I found myself thinking, “She knew the guy for only six months- they such must have spent a lot of time together.” That was really the only quirk I had with Reaction. Of course, it had its dorky moments (like the ending…gosh, I really didn’t like the closing scene), but they were minor irritants in this amazing love story. I hope you pick it up, as well as Reflection, because this is a book you don’t want to miss out on.

Rating: 5/5

Quick Content Review: *may contain spoilers*

Language: None

Violence: None

Sexual: Mild-Moderate (Heather and Nick kiss a couple times, sometimes passionately; also some cuddling/fondling. Nothing explicit and no sex.)

~Giveaway~

(Oh yeah- your favorite part. I know my readers well.)

Grand Prize is for a $25 Gift Card to Amazon, a replica of the necklace worn in the Reaction cover and an e-book of Reflection.  (Open Internationally)

There will also be 4 additional e-book copies of Reflection up for giveaway. (Open Internationally)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the other stops on the tour here: http://yabound.blogspot.com/2012/10/blog-tour-schedule-reaction-by-jessica.html

Cover Reveal: Reaction by Jessica Roberts

The dream is over, and reality begins…

I’m sure y’all have heard of Reflection by Jessica Roberts (you can find my review here). The cover of the soon-to-be released sequel, Reaction, is being revealed today, so take a peek and tell me what you think!

{I personally love this cover just as much as I loved the cover of Reflection.}

Reaction: Reflection #2

By Jessica Roberts

Release Date: November 6, 2012

Book Description: (Spoilers if you haven't read Reflection!)

Harmony…

I’ve previously had that in my life, but only once, briefly, a while ago.  It was during the time I’d started my first year of college.  My own apartment, a new old car, and a life free of deadbeat stepfathers, all of which was fulfilling enough.  But if it wasn’t, I also had a best friend, soul mate, and boyfriend all in one.  Yes, life was near perfect.

But one stormy night can change everything…

For many months I rested in a prolonged sleep, fighting for my life.  Well, more than fighting for it, also dreaming of it.  Dreaming of him.  Thank goodness, the dream is over and I’m back in the real world now.  And all I want is for everything to return to the way it was.  But nothing’s the same; most of all, us.

Once again, I find myself at the crossroads of a ruthless battle, this time not for life, but love.  Do I fight for the guy I twice fell for, or do I let her take him away?

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16075522-reaction

About the author:

Jessica Roberts grew up in the San Francisco, California Bay Area where she spent most of her time playing sports alongside her six siblings. She was crowned Miss Teen California her senior year of high school, and went on to Brigham Young University where she graduated in Human Development. Her love of family, church, writing, athletics, and singing and dancing keeps her life busy and fulfilled. She currently resides in Utah with her husband and three children.

Website: http://www.jessicarobertsauthor.blogspot.com/

Twitter username: JRobertsAuthor

Blog Tour: Reflection by Jessica Roberts (Review + Giveaway)

Reflection by Jessica Roberts

Release Date: 02/17/12

e-book

289 pages

Book Description from Goodreads:

Bright, spunky Heather Robbins has escaped her small hometown and is anxiously beginning her freshman year of college. Rising above her rocky childhood, she’s found a place where good things are finally starting to happen: her own private apartment, refreshing college classes, and an intense attachment to a mysterious and rugged classmate, Nick Richards.

But when her dreamy college life turns out to be nothing more than a wonderful dream while resting in a coma, questions threaten.

Now, Heather must press forward to unlock the real past, and find the answers buried deep in her mind. What she unlocks instead is a roller coaster ride through flashbacks, embellished memories, and a whirlwind romance.

And when it’s all over and she comes face to face with the truth, will she lose everything she’s fallen in love with?

About the Author…

Jessica Roberts grew up in the San Francisco, California Bay Area where she spent most of her time playing sports alongside her six siblings. She was crowned Miss Teen California her senior year of high school, and went on to Brigham Young University where she graduated in Human Development. Her love of family, church, writing, athletics, and singing and dancing keeps her life busy and fulfilled. She currently resides in Utah with her husband and three children.

Review:

I was pleasantly surprised when I realized how much I liked Reflection. I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I did. And I honestly don’t know why I had that preconception, but I did. Maybe it was because I tend not to like e-books (odd, I know, but sometimes I just downright dislike having to read books in that format). Or maybe it was because it’s a self-published book, and I haven’t had the best of experiences with self-published literature. But whatever reasons I had not to like it, I ended up throwing them out the window after I became completely engulfed in Reflection.

The one thing I loved about this book was the romance. Some might call it fluff, but I liked it despite whatever stereotype it’s put in. I will admit that it was a bit laughable at first, especially Heather’s physical reactions to seeing (or even hearing) Nick. I honestly thing I laughed once or twice. Out loud. No joke. But after the rough initial part, it became much more amazing. It wasn’t that there was a lot of physical affection- don’t read me wrong. I’ll spoil a little something for you: they didn’t even kiss until about 2/3 of the way through. Which was a little annoying at times, yes. I often found myself screaming “Hurrrrryyyy upppppp!” at my computer screen, and no, I’m not referring to tech problems. Maybe I liked it so much because Jessica wove their love story like it was first love. First love is dreamy and scary and utterly adorable and that’s how it was with Heather and Nick. I think first love is sometimes so unreal that it seems like it might not be reality- like it might be a dream. Jessica captured this perfectly in Heather and Nick’s relationship.

Now, I did have a little trouble with the characters at first. Heather was difficult to relate to. Very difficult. She was hard to figure out. Half the time I felt like I was in Nick’s shoes; curiously trying to figure out what made her tick, and sometimes coming back a little disturbed. She’s a piece of work, y’all. I wanted to yell at her and shake her and tell her to just drop her stupid “I have a crappy family and I’m poor and I’ve lied about it to Nick” act and just tell him the darn truth. At first I was absolutely confused as to what was holding her back from connecting with people, and then once I was finally enlightened on why she was acting like some deranged hermit, I became frustrated with her. Because there was no reason for her not to make friends and grow close to people. Ok, she lost one loved one. Doesn’t mean everyone’s going to die once she starts loving them. But somehow that logic was lost on her. Anyways, I was confused about her for ½ of the book, frustrated with her for 1/3 of it, and finally started figuring her out after the ¾ point.

I was frustrated with Nick at first, too. He was being a complete jerk. I don’t care if who you’ve lost or what you’ve given up- no one needs to be that cold. That hard. That indifferent. His personality grew on me, though, especially after he stopped being so unemotional toward Heather. He even turned kind of hot after a while. *winkwink*

All in all, I really enjoyed Reflection. The concept of it completely blew my mind (reminded me of Inception, too, which also blew my mind). The ending holds a painful cliffhanger, so as you can imagine, I’m eagerly awaiting the next book, Reaction, which is due out this fall. I highly recommend this to all romance junkies and anyone who is fascinated with the concept and power of dreams, like I am. *grin*

Quick Content Review: *may contain spoilers*

Language: None

Violence: Mild (a girl is hit by a car and goes into a coma)

Sexual: Mild (a few kisses, some playful cuddling)

Add to Goodreads:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13504524-reflection

Website:

http://www.jessicarobertsauthor.blogspot.com/

Twitter username:

@JRobertsAuthor

Goodreads Page:

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/688989.Jessica_Roberts

Facebook Page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-Roberts/174139906035619

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Reflection-Series-ebook/dp/B007APJ0D6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346370258&sr=8-1&keywords=jessica+roberts

Barnes and Noble:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reflection-jessica-roberts/1108923817?ean=2940013954878

*Giveaway*

Enter to win (1) $25 Amazon gift card plus an e-copy of Reflections plus (9) additional Reflection e-books. Open Internationally.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

IMM #2

Welcome to this week’s edition of In My Mailbox! This meme is hosted by Kristen at The Story Siren.

Surprisingly, my mailbox has been getting a lot of activity recently, so take a peek at what I received this week:

The Probability of Miracles (won). Thanks Penguin Teen and Goodreads!

Jabin and the Space Pirates (ARC). Thanks to debut author Bev Allen!

Last Kiss in Venice (ARC). Thanks to author Martin Chu Shui!

Reflection by Jessica Roberts (e-book for tour). Come by on September 5th to see my review for Reflection. Don’t miss any of the other awesome stops it will be making on its tour hosted by YA Bound!

Keep an eye out for reviews of these books! What’s in your mailbox this week?