BOOK REVIEW: Your Mess is Mine by Stephanie Alba

Title: Your Mess is Mine

Author: Stephanie Alba

Release Date: May 31, 2016

BLURB

I don't trust people who follow their hearts. 

Hearts are peculiar things. They're necessary muscles that keep us alive by pumping blood and oxygen into our veins. Hearts are also compulsory, often making us foolish. They pull us towards others with a force that aches, burns, and satiates you all at once. 

Before you know it that mass of tissue is no longer yours.

Maybe mine never was.

In my case, that draw came from a stranger that left my heart feeling both fulfilled and consumed.

I didn't expect to fight her for the last standby seat to New York City. I didn't plan on letting her get under my skin. Or the way her vulnerability tore me up inside and compelled me to care for her. She didn't plan on letting me witness her chaos.

Her anxious heart and my perfectionist mind let things get messy.

And though we didn't plan for it, our interrupting of each others' lives was exactly what we needed.

Sometimes the mess is the most beautiful part of life. 

MY REVIEW

Five our Five Superfeels Stars!

This one is a definite gem for me. There’s something so raw and so real with the way the characters were written that had me reveling on every word in this book. Your Mess is Mine will make a mess of your heart and it surely isn’t the kind of mess you’ll want to fix. 

Margo had completely vandalized my life. She had no clue she'd made a mess of the order I'd always possessed, and for the first time ever I was okay with being a little messy.

Once and for all, Margo wanted to be in charge of her life. She wanted a breath of fresh air that is free of judgment and doubt. But little did she know that there was something harder than being judged and doubted--falling and trusting at the same time. Margo was such a thrilling character. I loved exploring her realness and her poignancy. At first she seemed like a free-spirited young woman who enjoyed life in any way she can. But as the story progressed, her depth was slowly being revealed and I found out the free-spirited woman she appeared was in truth a caged bird of her own sufferings. 

I thought I knew what he wanted, but the way his mouth stamped itself on my skin was unexpected. It was actually more. It dared me to forget, while taunting me to remember.

Hudson knew exactly what kind of man he was; driven, hard-working and controlled. He preferred things in order. He never carried that level of seriousness into a relationship, though. At least, not until he met the most beautiful mess he was willing to lose himself into. Now Hudson is a rare kind of book boyfriend for me. Something that perfectly balances a real and a dreamy hero. He had his imperfections but his love is perfect. 

I need the heart that goes with your body and, more than anything, I want you to desire mine.

This book really touched base with all of my emotions. It was such an unpredictable read, starting off with a sweet and funny aura and then it slowly progressed to a deeper, more poignant prose. Miss Steph’s writing is fluid and engaging, making every scene palpable. The underlying topic on depression adding up to the realness of this book was an eye-opener; a chance for every reader to really get into the gravity of what is a commonly misunderstood disorder. I loved this book so much!

COVER REVEAL: Your Mess is Mine by Stephanie Alba

Title: Your Mess Is Mine

Author: Stephanie Alba

Release Date: May 31, 2016

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I don't trust people who follow their hearts. Hearts are peculiar things. They're necessary muscles that keep us alive by pumping blood and oxygen into our veins. Hearts are also compulsory, often making us foolish. They pull us towards others with a force that aches, burns, and satiates you all at once. Before you know it that mass of tissue is no longer yours.

Maybe mine never was.

In my case, that draw came from a stranger that left my heart feeling both fulfilled and consumed.

I didn't expect to fight her for the last standby seat to New York City. I didn't plan on letting her get under my skin. Or the way her vulnerability tore me up inside and compelled me to care for her. She didn't plan on letting me witness her chaos.

Her anxious heart and my perfectionist mind let things get messy.

And though we didn't plan for it, our interrupting of each others' lives was exactly what we needed.

Sometimes the mess is the most beautiful part of life.

Amazon

Chapter 1

Hudson

The airport felt like a claustrophobic beehive. People swarmed and whizzed past me, completely disregarding my personal space. As if travel didn't already suck, as if the process of taking off shoes and going through X-ray machines where some dude sees the outline of your dick wasn't miserable enough. The experience might've been better with a gorgeous woman to impress, but of course, I always got stuck with bearded, hefty men.

Truthfully, I didn't hate traveling. Not by a long shot. Traveling can change your view of the world. For some people, it can make it seem a lot bigger, filled with cultures and places you can only imagine. For others, it cinches the circumference of the Earth like a belt tightens around your waist. I loved the idea of discovering the world. Unfortunately, my late twenties consisted of traveling for work at a constant rate, which left little time for me to plan vacations I'd hoped for as a college student. But I guess I was lucky to be where I was when I was. Though I never believed in being in the right place at the right time, I learned the truth behind that notion that October evening.

Gate C3 in San Francisco International Airport was booming. Sitting there, I had no idea that I'd be traveling nonstop for the next five months, or that my life was going to radically change. My planet was suddenly going to feel connected and small, yet devastatingly large. Most importantly, I had no clue that the change was going to come with a pair of gray combat boots.

My flight to New York City was overbooked, but the accounting firm I worked for liked saving money, which provided me the torture of waiting on standby. Luckily, I usually had the good fortune to get on the plane despite being on a waiting list. And things were definitely looking up. The sexy, red-headed attendant winked when she said I was first up if someone didn't show.

Seeing as my flight didn't leave for another hour, I decided some caffeine would help me work during the flight. I'd be meeting with Daniel Ellis the following morning, a client who had been our big catch for years now. This was my chance to prove myself as a CPA in hopes of making partner at the company. I'd clawed my way up from the bottom, from taking care of tedious residential taxes to kissing every client's ass. Coffee was absolutely necessary to ensure I didn't fuck things up.  

Walking to the food court, I considered how airports never really close and how difficult it must be to keep them clean. They sometimes feel like an awful combination of restrooms and jail cells. People come in and out, bringing their germs along with them, leaving that trail of bacteria for the next lot to pick up. It's filthy if you really think about it. And then you get stuck there with a bunch of bitchy people trapped in a large holding room till you get shut into a metal tube towards your next destination.

Dunkin Donuts was my solution to being stuck there. Of course, the line was never-fucking-ending. If I didn't desperately need the caffeine, I would have turned my ass back towards the gate. As I browsed through e-mails on my phone, I overheard different tenors and tones ordering their fix: nonfat cappuccino, coffee–black, iced mocha latte, etc. Each one brought me closer to the counter. Finally, with only one person ahead of me, I looked up.

Petite, toned legs stood before me in skintight black leggings that led to scuffed combat boots. Impulsively, my eyes trailed up the rest of her body, noticing her luscious ass contrasting her thin waist. She had squared yet feminine shoulders—a dancer's body, and a perfect one at that. My blood heated as I started imagining what I'd do to a body like that. She wouldn't know what hit her. But then she spoke, and that dark-haired beauty let out words in a deep, sensual voice. It sounded like pure seduction and sweetness tangled together. I suddenly needed to match a face to that sound. Desperate wasn't something I did, but with her it began with just the sound of her words.

"Hi, an espresso, please," she said, putting her weight on one foot while eyeing the donuts. "Oh," she hummed, and the tight moan sent a jolt of blood to my groin, causing me to readjust myself. What the fuck is wrong with me? I'd reacted as such to plenty of women, but not because of their voice, and certainly not while they stared at sweets. But she was a curious little thing. "And an old fashioned donut too."

Moving closer, I tried catching a glimpse of her features, but it was no use. The only way I'd see her was if I was willing to risk looking like a creep, and I was already getting stranger-danger glances from the guy next to me. He was probably trying to do the same. Judgmental asshole. I waited, the two minutes dragging as she paid. Finally, she moved for me to order and I was able to take in her profile.

Fuck me.

I unavoidably understood the word stunned, because this girl was stunning. My body became stiff, each of my functions inept. All I could do was look.

Her fair skin contradicted her dark, almost black mane. Her lips were plump, yet delicate, the bottom one slightly fuller than the top. The pervert in me instantly imagined what they'd feel like all over my skin, specifically where I was currently throbbing. She must have felt me watching, because she turned to look right at me and caught my blatant staring. That delectable mouth offered me an acknowledging smile. I didn't pay it much attention. Correction: I couldn't pay it much attention. All I could focus on were her hypnotic, amber-colored eyes. They burned through my skin the way whiskey burns your throat on the way down, but warms your chest. It hurt. It seared my gaze to hers. That stare left me dizzy.

My lips parted, and I nervously shifted my weight. My clumsy movement left me bumping into the man beside me. His scalding coffee poured down my back and into my ass crack. I'd like to say I played it cool, but there was nothing cool about the burning skin that forced me to emit a pathetic screech.

Yes, a screech. You know, the same sound girls make when they see spiders. Now, mix that in with the forward hip thrust I did to avoid more coffee on my ass, and well, I was just the quintessence of masculinity. Fucking Thor right there.

When you get embarrassed, your first reaction is not to check if you're okay. No, it's to see how many spectators witnessed you making a complete idiot of yourself. The guy behind me apologized profusely, while the people in line behind me all stared—some wincing, others trying to suppress laughter.

It was incredibly awkward. No big deal. It's not like anyone of value saw it… Except her.

My eyes darted to find her staring, and that's when I felt another kind of burning all over my face. Like some neurotic asshole, I turned and strutted to the bathroom. I could've pretended it never happened, but the way she'd looked at me before my mortifying moves had left me exposed. She'd studied me with what appeared to be equal interest in my body. I wanted that look again, wanted to take in the way she perused my height, my face, and softly hummed to herself in what seemed like an approving assessment. It had turned me on. But I couldn't fucking go back, not after that debacle.

I wanted more, but I didn't even know where to begin. Ironically enough, I wouldn't have to go far.

Stephanie Alba lives in Miami, Florida with her husband, her toddler and their two dogs, Milo and Van Gogh. She's obsessed with Disney, British history, traveling, romances novels, movies, and Halloween. When she's not glued to her laptop or writing in her notebook, she's either: running, planning her next vacation, binge-watching Netflix, reading, or chasing her toddler. 

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BOOK REVIEW: For Both are Infinite by Stephanie Alba

BLURB

Living in London was always part of the plan.

Ellie just didn't expect to do it alone. 

Running away and starting anew was the only solution. 

She set some rules for herself: no connections, no love, no friends. 

Work would be her only solace. 

But when she's assigned to train Rhys Edwards, Britain's Heartthrob, for his run as Hamlet on West End, all her plans fade away. Ellie soon realizes that just because you're breathing, it doesn't mean you're alive, and she learns it's the connections in life that make it worth living.

MY REVIEW

4/5 STARS

I usually like my romance fast-paced with some heat but I really enjoyed this light, slow building but intense story. The progression of the romance between the two main character was slow but sure. It wasn't hurried and it was perfectly timed. The plot is light and it is easy to read. Stephanie Alba's voice is like a lullaby that lulls a reader into this hypnotizingly sweet debut. 

I gazed back, and there, in his eyes, I saw it; I wasn’t just Ellie Reed anymore. I was his someone. 

Ellie didn't want to face the loss of the only man she loved. Flying to London and establishing a career and life there, she thought living away and alone was the best way to heal (running away from the memories). I liked Ellie's wit and simplicity. Her character was cut out from the real world. She had doubts, fears, and questions and sometimes she allowed them to decide for her. There were times when I disliked her for her actions but then I realized that just makes her more real and relatable. 

I felt beheld by him, possessed just from his look. 

Even if Rhys Edwards lived under the limelight for quite a long time, he wasn't blinded by the sparkling life of Hollywood. I loved the dynamics of Rhys' character! He was sweet, patient, and ever understanding. He's exactly what every woman should have. In contrast to Ellie, Rhys was ideal, perfectly cut out for her character. He was swoony, sweet, romantic, handsome, and a movie star. I mean what more can you ask?

“I know your soul and mine are made with the same pieces, and it just took us some time and life to find one another.” 

The story flowed easily along with the slow, easy, but sure romance development between the characters. To some, it might be a bit dragging since it's slow paced but to me, it felt just right. The lack of speed was compensated with depth, and a whole lot of romance. The plot was light but it was engaging. It's a so-so read for me. Not too intense and hot. It's a relaxing read.