The Hopeless Romantics Book Blog are pleased to be a part of the Paperback Release Blitz for Renee Carlino's "Nowhere but Here."
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1nXHxSb
Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/1rUc29b
Synopsis:
A Chicago reporter in her mid-twenties unexpectedly finds love in Napa Valley when she’s assigned to spend a week with a famously reclusive genius.
Kate Corbin has lost her spark. From the outside, her life seems charmed. She has a handsome, long-term boyfriend and a budding journalism career at a popular Chicago newspaper. But in reality, her relationship is going nowhere, and she’s quickly losing motivation for what she once believed was her dream job. When her boyfriend dumps her unceremoniously, Kate loses all hope of finding love.
With no living family and few friends, Kate confides in her boss. Trusting that the hungry, ace reporter is buried somewhere deep inside, he gives Kate the opportunity to jumpstart her career. The assignment: to interview the famously reclusive R.J. Lawson, a wealthy tech genius who disappeared years ago but recently reemerged as a Napa Valley vintner. The week takes an unexpected turn, however, when Lawson refuses to divulge any information. Desperate for a lead, Kate turns to Jamie, a vineyard hand who shows her the romance of wine country—and stirs her aching heart. But his connection to Lawson is ambiguous, and when Jamie disappears before the end of the week, Kate is left to investigate another story: the truth behind the man who stole her heart.
Blog tour Review: Surj Harvey
Go back to a time when you really liked a boy ... as in really liked him and he really liked you. Remember all those feelings you had... that excitement every time you saw each other. The butterflies in your belly. Those hot flushes each time you were near one another. The goosebumps that spread all over your body when your fingers happened to graze... well I felt all of things when reading this book and more and I loved it. It really did take me on a trip down memory lane and that's what made my connection to this book so special. Renee Carlino's "Nowhere but Here" was such a beautiful love story. It was heart felt, emotional, funny, light hearted and even frightening at times but that's love for you and that's what made it such an addictive read.
Katy Corbin was going through a major funk in her life. Her spark was gone and instead, she was coasting through life day by day not really getting very far at all.
There was no one to take care of me, no matter how many people surround me.
I'm all I've got. Those words became my mantra.
As a reporter, you could say her work was sub standard of late and with a proposal submitted for an article entitled "The myth that fruit gum gives you fresh breath," things didn't appear to be getting better any time soon. This girl needed a huge kick up the ass and what better way than to give her an exclusive assignment... an interview with the mysterious, elusive conundrum that was R.J Lawson ... a 30 year old multi billionaire who had carved a career out of being a technological genius but then had vanished off the face of the earth, only to reappear years later in Napa Valley having purchased what was now a very successful vineyard!!! I was intrigued... hey who doesn't like a rich guy???
The pull toward her was like our own world existed around us, spinning so hard that the
gravity forced us to the center, to each other, into each others arms, into each others souls.
Unfortunately, said rich guy ended up being a bit of an asshole so thank god for Jamie... Katy's knight in shining armor who just so happened to be one very hot vineyard hand. Holy smoke, this guy was all kinds of something. His appearance made him look like a bad ass but his personality was completely the opposite. Jamie's character was just adorable, okay maybe that's the wrong choice of word. Let's try again. Jamie was walking, talking sex on legs!!! He was all man, toned and tattooed and charming and funny but with such a caring side too...a true gentleman and I fell hard for him!!! Come on, who wouldn't? Wait till you meet him ladies!!!
There was an instant connection between the couple that send my heart all fluttery and got me all excited. It was all those feelings I mentioned earlier coupled with all the little added touches like the date, the itinerary, the little notes by Jamie...Yup, reading their story made me feel like a giddy school girl embarking on her first crush... those feelings just melted me.
"That was nice," I said stunned. "Nice?" he said in mock offense. "Wonderous?"
"Mind blowing," he came back quickly. "Spine tingling." "Exploding stars. "Intoxicating."
"Christmas morning." "Chocolate lava cake." "Potassium chlorate and gummy bears."
I squinted sharply. "What?" "It's chemistry. Google it."
The banter the couple shared was brilliant and it was plain as day to see, there was a spark between them. Unfortunately, Jamie had a secret... and I knew what it was. Well actually I worked it out even though at no point during the first half of the book was it ever mentioned... call it intuition but I was right and I couldn't wait to see how would it all end when everything came out in the wash? Would it still be all hearts and flowers or would it be a walk in a thunderstorm in the freezing cold?
"I want to be with someone who intrigues me, who I can have fun with, who I can laugh with,
but who will challenge me. I've been looking for the same thing most of us are looking for."
"What's that?"
"Someone to come home to."
The first half of "Nowhere but Here" was fun and light hearted but to be honest, even when the mood of the story took a nose dive at 50% and everything went a little pear shaped, I still found comedy and laugh out loud hilarity among the pages. Katy's character and her antics were just so relatable and comical, it was like reading a sitcom and I loved it. Yes her life was on a downward spiral but she absolutely brought humour with it.
I honestly didn't know which end it was going to come out of, and then to my absolute horror
I realised it was both. Sitting on the toilet, I managed to puke into the sink.
See, now this quote probably doesn't sound funny on it's own but the situation surrounding it and the events that lead up to this incident had me howling with tears streaming down my face!!!
The serious turn of events at 75% were completely unexpected which definitely shifted the story up a gear or two but then as I approached the final hurdle, I found the book started to drag a little which sounds bizarre because so much happened in that last 15% or so. It's really hard to describe but I just wanted the book to end and all I was getting were more and more curve balls which unfortunately seemed a little far fetched and a little forced. I didn't want to feel that way after the amazing journey I'd taken with Jamie and Katy but I found myself skimming.
The writing in "Nowhere but Here" was just beautiful and so very visual. I could actually see the vineyard and the guest house, the barn and not forgetting Katy's apartment which really helped to bring this wonderful story to life. The characters were a complete joy to get to know and I loved watching their story unfold. Yes some of it may have been predictable but I still felt all the emotions each of the characters went through, the laughter, the heart break, the joy and the sorrow and that's what truly made this book.
All in all, this was a beautiful, breath taking love story that I would definitely recommend and as such rated it 4 Hearts.
Author Bio:
Renée Carlino lives in Southern California with her husband, two sons, and their sweet dog, June. When she's not at the beach with her boys or working on her next book, she likes to spend her time reading, going to concerts, and eating dark chocolate. To learn more, visit ReneeCarlino.com. - See more at: http://authors.simonandschuster.biz/Renee-Carlino/439936488#sthash.LK36Ta6e.dpuf
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