Firstly, thanks to Random House for this NetGalley <3
Date Read: February 22 – 23 2013
Release Date: March 28th 2013
Publisher: Random House UK/Ebury
Publishing
Source: NetGalley
Genre: Contemporary
My rating:
Synopsis:
“Virginity.
Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still
has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best
way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible--
a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she
freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse
that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren't
embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college
semester, she recognizes her new theatre professor. She'd left him naked in her
bed about 8 hours earlier.”
---
“We want what we can’t
have. It’s human nature.”
I was extremely hesitant to read this book as the premise
seemed to be that being a virgin in college was a bad thing. There is nothing
wrong with being a virgin while in college – if you’re not ready and you
haven’t found the right person then why would you give away something you can’t
take back? But the amount of hype and positive reviews surrounding this broke
my resolve and I just had to check it out. And I’m really glad I did because
this was such a cute book (I think a LOT of people have labelled this cute)
that I couldn’t stop reading until the last page.
What I really liked about Losing It was that it addressed
one of my issues immediately – the whole reason why Bliss left that delectable,
British specimen, NAKED in her own apartment was because she wasn’t ready.
Points to Bliss for actually having sense! The course of the book then shows
Bliss’ growth and understanding that just because she doesn’t want to be a
virgin, doesn’t mean she’s ready for sex. I loved how she came to realise she
wasn’t ready until she was in love. Also, I absolutely loved Bliss’ insanely
awkward personality. She was a bit of a control-freak, overanalysing every
situation and so paranoid – her thoughts were so relatable and funny, I liked
her instantly!
“Like a complete
psycho, I leaned my face into the pillow and sniffed like girls in books and
movies always do to see if I could still catch his scent. I couldn’t. And I
felt super creepy.”
Now, aforementioned delectable British specimen. It would be
a crime to explain him in such a manner and then leave y’all hanging as I talk
about other things. SO. Garrick Taylor. WOOOOOAH *SWOONS* gorgeous accent, soft
blonde hair, bright blue eyes that turned dark when staring into Bliss’ and
washboard abs! I was a goner from the first mention. Gah can he be any more
perfect? He was so sweet, caring, understanding and undeniably sexy I just
wanted to hug him all to myself. I think Garrick’s one of the most constant
book boyfriends I’ve ever read. And when I mean constant, I mean he was always
there for Bliss, never hurting her, holding her up figuratively and literally.
“The world fell over,
bent sideways, broken. And it cradled me, taking me with it, but instead of
dying, I fell into the warmth, solid and strong.”
OhmysweetGOODNESS the romance! Let me get the bad out of the
way first. I felt there was a bit of insta-like bordering on insta-love.
Carmack tried to dispel the insta-like/love but I felt she fell short of
achieving this. Despite Bliss saying she wasn’t falling in love, I could still
see things moving too fast and her feelings developing in a matter of short
chapters. However, the romance was so SWEET and it made me feel so warm and
fuzzy I think I was floating half the time. Carmack doesn’t hold back on the
steaminess and man can she create sexual tension! I think I paused a couple of
times to fan myself because dang was it HOT! Garrick was sexy as hell and so
seductive – yet adorable at the same time… is that even possible? I DON’T CARE
BECAUSE IT’S TRUE.
“His tongue slid
against mine, and my hand beneath his shirt came back to life, curling around
his side, pulling closer until my pelvis pressed into his hip. The kiss was
leisurely and divine, but too slow, slow, slow.”
I’m not really sure how I felt about the supporting
characters. I really disliked Bliss’ best friend Kelsey – she was trying to
improve Bliss’ moods when she was down, but it was in a really selfish way and
I just wasn’t convinced. Cade on the other hand, oh sweet Cade. Fell in love
with him instantly! He was sort of the boy next door and I couldn’t help but
think of him as wounded puppy at times. I’m super excited to read his story in
Faking It!
Not an overly big issue, but I felt that there could have
been more depth to the characters at times – especially Garrick. In particular
situations it was like he was there only for making out purposes and his back
story was a bit lacking too. Other than being a teacher, I wanted him to have a
purpose too. But like I said, no biggy and the main plot of Bliss trying to
sort out things with Garrick smoothed over this minor detail. On the other
hand, I admired Bliss’ independence. There may have been an insanely hot and
sexy teacher who was smitten with her but she wasn’t about to let him control
her life!
“And Garrick can be
cool or not with it; he doesn’t decide what I do.”
I really liked the writing style Carmack employed. Her
descriptions were detailed and I loved the techniques she weaved into Bliss’
hilarious thoughts (always a good sign when a debut author can show). The
physical descriptions were especially a great read and it really allowed me to
take in Bliss’ surroundings and feel what she felt.
“Each step felt like a
nail gun had been taken to my heels, my knees, my hips.”
“Shampoo became the
villain of my story, stinging my eyes and exhausting me as I tried to rub it in
and rinse it out. It felt like hours before the water ran clear enough for me
to open my eyes with them burning. And then I couldn’t convince myself to do it
again with conditioner.”
This was such a feel good book I’m definitely buying the
paperback when it comes out to get some more Garrick! I feel all peaceful and
content just writing the review. Re-reading bits to find quotes had me biting
my lip and smiling hehe.
“It was the sun, and
it held me in its arms, called me by name, touched me from forehead to toes. I
fell asleep cradled in the sky in the arms of a star.”
