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With Me in Seattle #1

Come Away with Me

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This is an alternate cover edition for B00A3XVP4E

Being confronted on the beach by a sexy stranger wasn't part of Natalie Conner's plans for a peaceful morning taking photos. And why on earth would he think she's taking pictures of him, anyway? Who is he? One thing’s for sure, he’s hot, and incredibly romantic, feeding Natalie’s wounded soul.

Luke Williams just wants the world to give him a break, so seeing yet another camera aimed at his face has him ready to pounce on the beauty behind the lens. When he finds out she has no idea who he is, he's intrigued and more than a little tempted by her. Natalie has a body made for sex, a sassy mouth and Luke can’t get enough of her, but he’s not ready to tell her who he really his.

Natalie is a no nonsense girl who doesn’t do well with lies and secrets. What will happen to this new relationship when she discovers what Luke’s hiding?

324 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 7, 2012

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30489 people want to read

About the author

Kristen Proby

151 books16.1k followers
Kristen Proby is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of over seventy published titles. She debuted in 2012, captivating fans with spicy contemporary romance about families and friends with plenty of swoony love. She also writes paranormal romance and suggests you keep the lights on while reading them.

When not under deadline, Kristen enjoys spending time with her husband and their fur babies, riding her bike, relaxing with embroidery, trying her hand at painting, and, of course, enjoying her beautiful home in the mountains of Montana.

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Profile Image for Baba  .
858 reviews4,002 followers
July 10, 2015
Review completed November 11, 2012

46 Kindle pages refer to the term beautiful. Even the chocolate cake and the aircraft are beautiful. *facepalm*

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Come Away With Me is one of the worst books I've read this year. Let's get down to business…

DNF at 51 %. Reading this book is clearly very unhealthy for me cos I'm sure that my blood pressure went through the roof. This story is simply 'blah'. Honestly, I had to look twice when I saw all those four and five-star ratings and I thought "What is wrong with you, Baba? Did we all read the same book?" *shakes head*

I apologize to you all for using the term "shallow" pretty excessively in my review of Come Away With Me. While we're on it, the author applied the term 'beautiful' 130 times in the context of human beings. How shallow is that?

His beautiful lips
His beautiful face
Oh, wait, it gets better yet: his impossibly beautiful face
He's so beautiful
beautiful head
You are so beautiful
beautiful body
She is beautiful
beautiful hair
His beautiful blue eyes
Good night, beautiful
Your sweet, beautiful ass
"You." Kiss. "Are." Kiss. "Beautiful."
You look beautiful
beautiful girl
His sister is simply beautiful
The granddaughter is beautiful
His beautiful hand


Of course it is very repetitive. I did not count how many times Natalie took Luke's beautiful face in her hand. Ugh!

Everybody is beautiful. Anything and everything is beautiful. Come Away With Me is clearly OVERPOPULATED by beautiful and shallow people. In fact, it's a shallow beauty contest and I feel like I am in the wrong movie. It's a story about shallow insta' lust & "love" that did not work out for me at all. Granted, insta' lust works just fine with me when it's well done. Unfortunately the author didn't pull it off here. Hence, I never felt their chemistry and the sexual tension was totally lacking as well. By no stretch of the imagination was I ever able to bond with the characters either.

The cover is great but other than that I didn't like anything at all about this story. Come Away With Me provides shallow and one-dimensional MCs. The sex scenes are boring and poorly written and the heroine has body issues to no end from the get-go. The hero is an overly jealous fool. That said, I disliked his hot and cold attitude. And when Nat had a shooting with a client, he lost it when he thought he found them in a compromising situation. Another lame and ridiculous conflict. Finally, when Natalie was up to date about Luke being she freaked out, acted childish and displayed her super drama queen attitude. Unbelievable. Absurd. The writing is shallow, wooden, stilted and immature.

"God, I'm an idiot." (So true, Natalie.)
I'm embarrassed, I just want to run. (Yes, do that.)
I want him gone. (Uh-huh)
I want him to hold me and tell me it's not true. (Are you for real? *rolls eyes*)


After an unpleasant incident at his parents' house, I thought she was smart enough to realize she didn't do anything wrong. Oh, Baba, think again! They go back to his house and what does she do? Nat is insecure and she starts to tell me what he might be thinking right now and that is one of my pet peeves.

Where did he go?
I frown as unease starts to unfurl through my stomach. Oh my God, I really screwed up. (Duh?) He must be mad at me for the way I spoke to his sister at dinner. (*facepalm*) Where is he? (I hope he never comes back.)
Maybe he wants me to leave, and he's giving me space to pack my things. (I'd wish.)
I climb the stairs and head for his bedroom, willing myself not to cry until I get home. (Please, spare me!) I'll just pack my things and get the hell out of here. Then I can fall apart. (Just hold back till I'm gone. *rolls eyes again*)


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"No one has ever jumped to my defense like that. You were so calm and sure of yourself, and so pissed off. Your green eyes were on fire, and you looked so beautiful. (blah...*rolls eyes once more*) I wanted to f@ck you right there at the table." (*gasp*)
"Luke Williams!" I pull back and stare at him, shocked.
"It's true. You turned me on, big time." (Really?)
"I don't think that would have been appropriate with your parents sitting at that same table." (Truer words have never been spoken.)
"I don't think I would have cared if the Pope and Elvis were sitting at that table." (I'm sure the Pope would have had a heart attack and Elvis is turning over in his grave right now.


Frankly, I completely understand that some people get off on voyeurism. But. What Luke said was simply disgusting. Doing the deed in front of his parents? No, thanks.

Overall verdict
Come Away With Me is a huge disappointment and one of the worst books I've read this year. Read at your own risk.


A shout out to my GR friend Tammy
51 Kindle pages
refer to your beloved term 'baby'. Got it, baby? *angelic smile*


Steam: 3 / Chemistry: 0 / Sensuality: 0 / Eroticism: 0
Profile Image for Alex is The Romance Fox.
1,461 reviews1,231 followers
February 9, 2017
I don’t even have to think twice…what was one of the worst books I read this year…..Come Away with Me, the 1st book in Kristen Proby’s With me in Seattle Series.

After seeing all those 4 and 5 star ratings….I asked myself….is this the same book I read????? I gave up halfway….and that’s saying something about me….because I do not like DNF reading a book!!! But seriously, I could not turn another page and read about how beautiful Natalie Conner is and how beautiful….
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Oops, sorry, the hero in this story is not Edward Cullen…I just got a bit confused with the hero, whose name is Luke Williams, who happens to be an ex super movie star who acted in 3 blockbuster movies about vampires…..apologies for the mistake!

Okay, let me start again!

Natalie is taking fotos on the beach early one morning when she’s suddenly confronted by the most BEAUTIFUL man who wants to rip her camera from her and demands why she’s taking fotos of him. Of course, she’s taken no photos of the guy…even though he’s beyond beautiful.
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So, everything is sorted out eventually and Luke Williams, hiding his famous identity from Natalie, is suddenly struck with lust for the sexy Natalie…..
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Natalie is just as struck with lust for Luke…..he’s beautiful, he’s gorgeous, he’s beautiful
“Clearly, Mr Beautiful Blue Eyes and Sexy Greek God Face is a loony tune.”
Hell, Luke Williams is doing something to me…..never mind to poor old Natalie, with all her body issues!!!!! She can’t believe this Greek god thinks she’s beautiful. A guy like him……
““I’ve fallen in love with a beautiful, sexy, sweet, jealous control freak.
Shit.”
My head is spinning….Luke Williams is causing me some problems…..
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Right, insta-love occurs. These two people are beyond besotted with their beautiful partners…..

Sorry, am I repeating myself???? Just want to make it very clear that these are extraordinary BEAUTIFUL people, who are so in love…..a real LOVE STORY here!!
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By now it should be clear how the word BEAUTIFUL applies to EVERYONE and I mean EVERYONE in this story….the hero/heroine are beautiful, the heroine’s bff is beautiful, the hero’s mother, father, sister are beautiful….in fact, these people are totally superficial and so not deep…but never mind…because……
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All the drama, all the jealousy…………hell, never mind having my fingers in my mouth half way through this story…it was more of something like this….
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This is the 1st book I read by this author…….am I going to read any other by her??? Not sure!!! But what I am sure is that I don’t think I will continue with this series.

Of course, there are so many other readers who loved this book……and I totally understand that it works for some…for me….it did not!!!!
Profile Image for Candace.
1,179 reviews4,953 followers
July 31, 2016
A Nice, Predictable Romance

As far as sweet, heartwarming romances go, this was a pretty good choice. It was predictable, but enjoyable. I listened to the Audible version and found the narration to be well done as well.

Natalie meets Luke when she is taking pictures early one morning. She is a photographer and he mistakenly thinks that she is photographing him. He tries to get her camera from her, only to find out that he had misjudged the situation.

There is plenty of attraction between the two and a whirlwind romance ensues. Yet, before they can even establish their relationship, they are having problems. After only a day or two together, they're having their first big fight. From that point forward there is drama, drama, drama!

Now, I love stories with a large helping of conflict and plenty of angst. However, you really can get too much of a good thing. The deeper into this story I got, the more I wondered if there was any cliche that hadn't been covered. It felt like the author just started throwing in every over-used plot "twist" that could be thought of, indiscriminately. One or two is manageable, but this was out of hand.

Despite all of that, I did mostly enjoy this story. It was good, even if I spent a fair amount of time rolling my eyes. In fact, the first half was easily a 4-star read for me. Somewhere along the way, it fumbled.

I won't be rereading this one, but it was alright for a one-time listen. Could've been better, but it could've been a lot worse also. This one landed firmly in the "middle of the road" territory for me.
Profile Image for Aestas Book Blog.
1,059 reviews75.1k followers
November 8, 2012


HOLY FREAKING SWOON!!

Looking for a steamy, no angst, pure swoon-fest?? Look no further!

I still can’t believe this was a debut novel! The flow, the writing style, the feel of the story, the characters, everything just instantly hooked me from the first scene. Seriously, I read most of this book with this happy little smile on my face and my heart a-fluttering.

On a beautiful quiet morning, Natalie is out on the beach taking photos of the scenery when she is suddenly confronted by a gorgeous man enraged that she was taking his picture and demanding that she turn over her camera. Clearly surprised that she actually wasn’t, and even more shocked (and thrilled) that she doesn’t know who he is, and he apologizes profusely and asks her out to breakfast hoping to smooth over their rough start.

And so begins their relationship. Luke loves that Natalie doesn’t recognize him and that her feelings for him are based purely on what he’s shown her of himself, and Natalie can’t get enough of this amazing, charming man who stepped into her life. But Natalie is a up front, honest girl and when she eventually finds out what he’s hiding, the sparks fly.

“Are you having doubts?”
“Hell, no, I just want to make sure this is what you want, baby. If you say no, that’s fine, but please, God, don’t say no.”


Luke. Oh my god Luke freaking Williams! I have a new book boyfriend (shhh, don’t tell the others)! He was butterflies-in-my-belly, set-my-heart-a-flutter, clutch-my-chest-and-fan-myself swoony! He cooked, opened doors, gave foot rubs, bought flowers (by the truckload), planed surprises, spoiled his girl… and best of all, was completely devoted to and in love with Natalie. Over all, pretty much just pure fantasy man material.

“Is there anyone else?”
“Why is that any of your business?”
“Because you’re the first woman I’ve brought into my home and all I can think about is getting your beautiful body naked and fucking you senseless. I need to know if there is any competition. I don’t share, Natalie.”…
“Saying that you don’t want to share implies that I’m already yours, Luke.”
“Aren’t you?” he whispers.”


Their relationship was very romantic, very quick to develop (remember, this book is pure swoon-fest), and very functional. They each had their insecurities but I really liked how they compromised in each situation. Neither of them would just roll over and give in but would each listen to the other’s perspective and make a decision that respected their feelings.

This book has no external drama or bad guy. No cheating, major stupidity, long separations or anything will make you threaten bodily harm to your eReader. Its solely focused on the romance between Luke and Natalie!

And oh my Lord are there ever boat-loads of steamy sex scenes! Seriously, these guys can’t stop doing it! =) Everywhere! The wall, the bed, the bathroom, the shower, the limo, the airplane, the desk, the car, the beach… I’m sure I’m missing a few but this book basically goes from swoon to sex to swoon to sex to more swoon and more sex… mostly vanilla but all hottt!

The book is told in first person perspective from Natalie’s POV for the whole story up until the very sweet epilogue which is from Luke. The writing style was vaguely reminiscent of EL James’ in places. I kind of wavered on whether or not that was a good thing but overall, I guess the fact that I honestly smiled my way through most of the book meant that I really liked it. I love the style and it worked well for this story.

“I’ve fallen in love with a beautiful, sexy, sweet, jealous control freak.
Shit.”


So given all the boat-loads of swoon and steam, what made it 4 stars instead of 5? There were a few small things, nothing huge, though but there were a few moments that made me give the page the “squinty skeptical eye” and go hrmmmm (but nothing lingering, just kind of a moment that I got over quickly). I also found there was a bit too much focus on body image talk – at first it was fine, but it was mentioned several times over the course of the book and eventually got to be a little much for me. And while the heroine was definitely not what I’d call annoying, she did have a few (luckily, very short) moments that made me roll my eyes. And lastly, and this might sound weird, but some parts of the story just felt a little ‘too’ perfect at times. Too many endearments, too many 'perfect' scenes. But still, I mean, for a pure swoon-fest, that’s kind of what you want, right? :D

This book left me completely satisfied with Luke and Natalie's story. There is a HEA (no cliffhanger!) and I'm very much looking forward to more from this author. And she just told me we have a LOT to look forward to: Book #2 "Fight With Me" which will follow Jules' (the best friend's) and Nate's story and is scheduled for release on Jan 4, 2013. Then Will's story, "Play With Me" comes out in March!!! oh, and we get an Isaac/Stacy novella this December too! Seriously, Kristen Proby sure knows how to keep her readers happy :D

If you love steamy romance without excess drama, then definitely add this book to your TBRs!

Thank you to the author Kristen Proby for providing me with an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

CASTING (above and below)



For more of my reviews, visit Aestas Book Blog

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Profile Image for Patty ~ Wrapped Up In Reading Book Blog.
1,260 reviews10.2k followers
May 24, 2015
*****FOUR STARS*****
{BR with Mel}


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I have had this book on my TBR since 2012 and decided to read it since I'll be meeting Ms Proby at a book signing in NYC next weekend! When I started this, I thought the dialog was a little corny and that it was not going to be a hit with me. In the end, I truly ended up enjoying this one so much!!!



Natalie is a photographer and Luke was once a Major Hollywood actor. He hasn't acted in several years and loves his life of seclusion in Seattle. When the two meet, they don't hit it off instantly, as Luke mistakes Natalie for a Paparazzi and tries to confiscate her camera. In her line of work she takes sexy boudoir pictures of couples and she also just takes pictures of the local scenery. She's not into movies so she has no clue that Luke was once a box office draw. This, of course, intrigues and captivates him.



This story is very predictable. At times I compared it to "Love Unscripted", although I wouldn't put them in the same caliber. I knew exactly what was going to happen when it did happen. But, funny enough, I really freaking enjoyed this story more than I ever thought possible. I loved Luke and his sexy, possessive and alpha ways. There was plenty of steamy sex. And I really liked some of the secondary characters. I am looking forward to reading Jules' book some time soon.



If you are in need for something light with plenty of steamy sex and some lovable characters, I would definitely recommend this to you!! :)
Profile Image for SueBee★bring me an alpha!★.
2,417 reviews15.3k followers
Want to read
July 18, 2015


 photo Free Li xB by sb_zpsamwuwffk.gif

FREE on Amazon US today (6/1/2015)

Stand-alone book 1.

BLURB:
Being confronted on the beach by a sexy stranger wasn't part of Natalie Conner's plans for a peaceful morning taking photos. And why on earth would he think she's taking pictures of him, anyway? Who is he? One thing’s for sure, he’s hot, and incredibly romantic, feeding Natalie’s wounded soul.

Luke Williams just wants the world to give him a break, so seeing yet another camera aimed at his face has him ready to pounce on the beauty behind the lens. When he finds out she has no idea who he is, he's intrigued and more than a little tempted by her. Natalie has a body made for sex, a sassy mouth and Luke can’t get enough of her, but he’s not ready to tell her who he really his.

Natalie is a no nonsense girl who doesn’t do well with lies and secrets. What will happen to this new relationship when she discovers what Luke’s hiding?


http://www.amazon.com/Come-Away-Me-Se...


FREEBIES are often good for MORE than one day, I have gathered all my FREEBIES on a special shelf: Kindle-freebies (currently over 430 books)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...
Profile Image for Jill.
825 reviews136 followers
January 13, 2013
DNF!!!!!
This book irritated me. It was awful. The reviews I saw were all good and I was excited. But this was a real let down. I am only 22% in I don't even know anything about Luke yet and I don't care to keep reading to find out. I hate how they just keep on going on about each others looks, gah. Yes, yes, yes I am sure you are both amazingly beautiful and don't even know it!! Sure!
It just all seemed so over the top. Sickly sweet, I think my teeth may be rotton and everything they said just seemed like something they should say, not what those characters would say. Am I making any sense on this crazy awful review rant?
Anyway I am sad,I had such high hopes.
Profile Image for ~ Becs ~.
708 reviews2,202 followers
November 5, 2012
Holy Hotness Batman!

This is a stunningly sexy, super steamy contemporary romance and I adore the gorgeous, enticing cover.

Natalie, a professional photographer, and Luke have very inauspicious beginnings on the beach early one morning when she is out taking photographs. He sees red and accuses her of taking pictures of him when she is, in fact, taking landscape shots. Luke has reasons to want to protect his privacy but Nat just thinks he’s a mugger trying to steal her camera. It’s a case of beautiful mugger meets beautiful artist.

After apologising profusely for his actions when he realises his mistake, Luke relishes Nat's ignorance of who he is and, as their relationship develops, he loves that she is coming to care for him, the real Luke as a person without pre-conceived ideas. Of course, he’s lying to her by omission and you can expect sparks to fly when she eventually finds out.

Luke is a hero to die for – he’s attentive, romantic, pretty nifty between the sheets and really quite devoted to Nat. He’s a beautiful, sexy, sweet, jealous control freak. Nat has known her share of heartbreak and is slow to trust but she soon opens up to Luke and shares her darkest secrets with him and she is a worthy heroine – fiery, loyal and tenacious. She’s not going to take any crap from anyone, however rich they are and certainly puts Luke through his paces.

Their story is incredibly steamy and this is an erotic romance that has more sex scenes than you can shake a stick at! Nat has a collection of script tattoos all over her body in places that are hidden by her clothes and the scene where Luke slowly discovers them all is quite the sensual voyage of discovery! Their story is stunning – two wounded souls finding salvation together, healing one another. Despite being very sexy, it’s also a beautiful romance and the epilogue is absolutely to die for as it’s told from Luke’s POV, after the whole novel is told from Nat’s.

This is highly recommended for all you erotic romanceaholics out there. You know who you are!

Nat & Luke

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There’s a great host of richly, crafted secondary characters who add great depth and detail to the story and I’m seriously hoping that Nat’s best friend, Jules will star in a sequel with Nate.

With thanks to the lovely Kristen Proby for providing me with an ARC of this novel

For more reviews, please visit Sinfully Sexy Book Reviews


Come Away With Me goes on sale Friday November 9th 2012
Profile Image for Gitte TotallyBookedBlog.
2,094 reviews940 followers
November 12, 2012
This book was a 2.5 star read for me.

I have to say I was really looking forward to reading this book with my fellow readers on our blog. The hype surrounding it had been immense and from what I had heard everyone was loving it. I was sent an arc for an honest review by the Author a while back but I decided to wait and read it with everyone else as is normally the case with BOFF reads; which I love.

Unfortunately I didn't love it, and I hate when that happens because I know how much an Author puts into their story. However, there are so many amazing books out there and I have my integrity and always endeavour to leave an honest review no matter how much it pains me to do so like in this case.

So yeah, this one didn't work for me. I was enjoying the start and thought this is going to be good, then I lost it and I have to admit to skim reading through the middle until the last bit where it picked up again. So overall, I guess I could stretch to saying it was just okay.

To me, and this is my opinion, it was gratuitous sex with no real story to balance it out. Like a mediocre badly dubbed porn flick where the words baby and beautiful lost all meaning. Do I love my sexy steamy books, absolutely 100% yes, however I need a story too, I need the emotions, the angst, the connection with the characters and I just didn't get that. I wanted to love this story so much, as everyone else seems to but on no reflection on the Author, it just wasn't for me.

I really liked how Luke and Natalie met, and I really did think Natalie was a lovely character whereas Luke blew hot and cold for me but I just couldn't connect to either characters.

I will say that I did enjoy the ending and I thought the Author pulled it back in, on way to redeeming it somewhat for me, but it was just that little bit to late.

I'm going to call this a marmite book; you either love it or you don't.
Profile Image for twstrfries.
136 reviews12 followers
September 3, 2016
I'm starting to hate random downloads. It’s a game of hit or miss and I'm getting a lot of misses lately. I like trying out Indie authors. You can never tell when you'll find a gem in a sea of e-books today, that's why I give them a try. But now I think I need a break.

Come Away with Me has a nice cover and blurb. I'm still crazy-craving-for-celebrity-characters so I picked this up. Oh my, what a freaking waste of time. I know how much authors invest in their work but this really didn't work for me.

- The plot is common, no serious conflict.
- There are events that were thrown in from out of nowhere and at times all at once without even making the characters breathe.
- The author has a lot of ideas and she crammed it in the first book of a series.
- The world building was not realistic. The author failed to catch the reality of Hollywood.
- The characters didn't stand out. They're flat.
- The sex isn't even good. Bleh.

I don't consider the bad plot and storytelling enough reasons for me to give this a 1-star rating. What ticks me most was the writing. There are a lot of grammar slips I can't make myself not to notice. There are also details that aren't necessary. It gives the impression that the writing is aimed to impress not to express.

Another issue I can't let go is the pregnancy. This particular sentence made my head spin:

"I'm on the pill to prevent pregnancy"

Duh?! It’s a contraceptive for chrissake. What do you think it is for? World peace? That's the main reason of using the Pill unless stated otherwise. The explanation of it not working is unbelievable after the heroine strongly claimed that she never missed a pill and that she is taking it correctly. The doctor insisted that it's 99.9% effective when it’s taken correctly (he's not listening, is he?) and sadly she is part of the 1%. Can I get a better explanation? Like maybe the patient took antibiotics that wane its effectiveness?

I really should take a break from reading Indie adult contemporary romance. Huh.


****
Review also posted @ Off the Wall.
Profile Image for Jennifer Kyle.
2,596 reviews5,390 followers
November 12, 2012
Strong start and then Nothing

In the beginning Luke and Natalie were totally swoon worthy:

description

Luke is a famous actor and Natalie is a freelance photographer. I was hooked after the first chapter. Luke assumes Natalie is taking his picture and attacks her for her camera. I really loved how Luke and Natalie met and fell in love.

Sadly the rest of the story lacked drama and excitement. They fell in love, have lots of hot sex, got engaged, pregnant and got married. Nothing really spectacular happened at all. I keep reading anticipating something major coming but the story stayed its course.

I loved Luke's coffee deliveries in the mornings though, so sweet!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Lyndi W..
2,042 reviews209 followers
d-n-f
July 27, 2015
What the hell, folks? Why are you all squeeing about this book? Not only is it written in a terrible first person, present tense POV, but this bitch says "I walk home quickly, feeling Luke’s eyes on my Kardashian-esque backside until I turn the corner toward my house."



First of all, "Kardashian-esque" is not a fucking word. It never will be. Second, that little line right there tells me that the author is going to attempt to sprinkle in some pop culture references so that the reader will associate this particular book with "trendy"...

I've already rolled my eyes and tossed my e-reader away - at 3%. THREE FRICKIN' PERCENT. How have you people managed to not only finish reading this, but enjoy it?
Profile Image for Holly.
532 reviews536 followers
January 9, 2013
6 gushtastic stars

The perfect blend of sweet, angst-free romance and super hot sex.



I have had this book for quite a while, and to be honest...after reading some of the less than stellar reviews I kept pushing it down my TBR list.
If I have learned anything from this experience it's that I really need to ignore other people's reviews and go with my own gut instinct, because in the end...I absolutely adored this book.



Confession time: When i started reading this book, it took me a while to get past a couple of issues that i had. First of all, in the beginning it really felt like fanfiction to me. Not to say that the writing wasn't enjoyable to read...it was just that something felt a little off...which brings me to the other issue that i had. From the very first scene in which Natalie stumbles upon him, I had the impression that the author had based Luke's character on Rob Pattinson. And then...I read this.

Luke had stared in three vampire movies that not only did well, but became such a huge sensation that you couldn't go anywhere without seeing the stars or merchandise of all kinds.



But you know what? After that revelation, something amazing happened. I put the whole idea of fanfic and Edward Cullen out of my head...and lost myself in the story. Because what Kristen Proby did was bring to life an incredibly sweet, and blessedly angst-free love story that completely blew me away. And offered up more swoon-worthy moments than almost any other book I have ever read.





Luke is...hands down...the most romantic male character I have ever stumbled upon in fiction. Some of the things he does for Natalie almost made me cry because they were so overwhelmingly sweet. But not roll-your-eyes-to-the-back-of-your-head kind of sweet. No, Luke's sweetness was...just right in the scope of this incredibly romantic story, if that makes any sense?!

Something else that I absolutely loved about this book is that Natalie is not a stick-figure. She has curves, and Luke never stops letting Natalie know how much he appreciates those curves. It was refreshing to me to read about a man who appreciates a real woman's body. And while I will always love my bad boys, it was so nice to read about a guy who was head over heels in love with his girl and wanted the whole world to know it.

And did I mention the fact that i loved the lack of angst?! God, talk about a breath of fresh air! I for one have read way too many books where the H/h flip flop on their feelings and torture themselves (and the reader) with their (mostly self imposed) struggles to be together. Natalie and Luke embrace their feelings for each other and even though I realize the speed at which their relationship progresses may annoy some people, for me it felt natural.

"You are every fantasy I have ever had come true, Natalie...
I'm almost afraid to touch you," he whispers.
"Why?" I cock my head to the side, confused.
"I'm afraid you're not real."




In case you're beginning to think that there was no heat in this book...let me set your mind at ease. The sex scenes are hot! And yes, there are a lot of them. Luke and Natalie's chemistry is insane right from the beginning. If I was going to be nit-picky, I would admit that I got a little tired of reading the word 'impressive' when Natalie was thinking about a certain part of Luke's body, and the sheer number of times that Luke commented on how wet Natalie was. But again...that's being nit-picky. :P

Come Away With Me was a beautiful, swoon fest of a book. I was truly sad to see Luke & Natalie's story come to an end, because I loved being lost inside their world. <3



He leans down and gently presses his cheek to mine. "Thank you," he whispers.
"For what?" I whisper back.
"For being mine."


Read more of my reviews at my blog: http://ravingbookaddict.blogspot.com/
Profile Image for Duchess Nicole.
1,275 reviews1,570 followers
May 19, 2013
2.5 Stars
I knew going in to this that it wouldn't be a favorite of mine, but I'm a stickler for reading order. And it wasn't necessarily HORRIBLE. In fact, I can see the appeal for some readers. But I've been much more stingy with stars as of late, and this book just didn't cut it. So 2.5 Stars...

My Synopsis:
Natalie is a photographer living in...you guessed it, Seattle. One fine morning while walking along the beach, snapping photos of the beauty that surrounds her, she is suddenly assaulted by some strange, huge, HOT man who is apparently enraged with her. He is adamant that she not take his picture. Once Natalie finally convinces the loony that she was indeed only out for nature pics and other non personal photos, he does your basic one eighty and asks her out. Of course, our smart girl wants nothing to do with the crazy man, and politely refuses.

When Natalie runs into Luke again a few days later, he is adamant that she get coffee with him, and Natalie finally agrees. Little does she know that the yummy male hotness that she starts to see on a regular basis is none other than Luke Williams, famous actor now gone reclusive due to a kind of phobia concerning fans and paparazzi. For the longest time, she doesn't figure it out. And when she finally does, the angst begins...and doesn't end...

My Thoughts:
My biggest problem was how much sex there was. Now, don't get me wrong...I like sex in books. In fact, I LOVE sex in books...when it's done right. In Come Away With me, there was seriously a sex scene in nearly every other scene in the book.

Go to lunch....have sex
Go to dinner....have sex
Meet your parents....have sex
Meet your roommate....have sex
Have a fight....have sex
Take a shower....have sex
Walk downstairs....have sex
Smile funny....have sex
Breath....have sex

It was seriously redundant. Not to mention that the sex was soooo boring and mediocre. These two have sex like they've already been married for ten years and the lust is gone. Most of the sex scenes themselves lasted for only one page or so and consisted of a brief kiss, rubbing of chest or breasts, possibly a little oral action, and a quick thrust or two before a guaranteed orgasm... I prefer quality sex to lots of sex. Give me one ten page love scene with tons of description, slow, aching movements, and a drawn out climax to ten short and sweet sex scenes that feel like a handful of slam, bam, thank you ma'ams.

There just wasn't much room left for a fully fleshed out plot. What there WAS of the plot was a good one. I liked both Luke and Natalie a lot. Neither was stupid, neither was thoughtless. They fit together well. I like the families...I LOVE the fact that each of them have a supportive, loving group of people that will continue to be a part of this series.

There were a few other things that bugged me. I get frustrated at medical stuff being thrown in but not researched properly. (Hyperemesis gravidarum is usually a VERY serious situation for pregnant women, and here it was glossed over as if it could be taken care of with an anti-nausea pill. Very much not so in real life.)

I'm going to stop here, because I don't want to come across as nit picky. Suffice it to say, if I didn't have a few of my friends assuring me that this series gets better, I'd likely have stopped right here. I really had to push on through to finish this one. However, I really do see potential in this author. I understand that this was a debut novel for her...please correct me if I'm wrong...and she has since moved on to get better and better ratings/reviews. So I'm still very excited to read the next installment!
Profile Image for Fatima.
849 reviews350 followers
November 10, 2012
“Because you’re the first woman I’ve brought into my home and all I can think about is getting your beautiful body naked and fucking you senseless. I need to know if there is any competition. I don’t share, Natalie.” ......
........ Holy Jesus, he wants to fuck me. Well, back at you, bossy man.


fanning self Pictures, Images and Photos

Yeah , I might have tweaked that a little bit . Like , you see those full stops there , those are actual words ... I just thought that might be enough to catch your attention ...

Photobucket

Uh oh , somethings really wrong with that gif ... bahahaha !

Anyhoooo , back to the review . I've got 3 words for this story or more like 3 words to describe how I feel about this story !

SWEET , SIMPLE & SEXY !!!!

I have to say that Kristen Proby has definitely hit the nail on the head with this one in the ' SWEETNESS OVERLOAD ' department ! The book is a fun filled , no tension filled heart breaking angsty type of a read at all . Instead , it just focuses on this super cute couple who enjoy being in love , and try to get pass various insecurities and past issues .

Photobucket

The blurb pretty much says everything that needs to be said , but you seriously have to read this book and see what its all about ! You are sure to fall in love with it !

Natalie and Luke are just AWESOME !! They are in love and very new to this feeling . What I mean is that although they've been in relationships before , this - what they have/feel for each other - is new to them and I loved the way their relationship progressed in this story .

The romance here is a pretty good mix of sweet and steamy . Luke is this scorchingly hot and sinfully tempting smooth operator who loves pearls and roses ! I was all like , ' Ohmygod !! Iwantaboyfriendjustlikehim !!! ' * wishful thinking * and Natalie , I would love to be BFF's with her for sure !!

One moment the romance is like :

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and the next its all :

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Damn I love this book . After I finished reading it , I was a sloppy mess of happy tears and hope ! Yeah , this book makes you want to believe that love exists , that one day you'll find your prince charming and that one day love will surely come around ! * Wipes tears *

Kristen Proby makes an impressive debut , and I'm sure as fuck that I'll be reading more of her works !!! Come Away With Me is a sweetly told , sexily sketched story of finding love and believing in it !
Profile Image for Ginger.
958 reviews553 followers
December 26, 2017
DNF at 40%. Super repetitive in the dialogue, the characters weren’t that interesting and it was just BLAH. Even living in Seattle and having Seattle references did not save this book for me.

Why do I try to read contemporary romance?! If I think I’m going to try this genre again, I need to revisit this book review again. 😂😉
Profile Image for SamJ ★Needs a HEA★.
609 reviews908 followers
November 6, 2015
This was a 2.5 possibly 3 for me.

I had a few issues with the relationship between the 2 main characters.

Natalie Conner is a photographer who is confronted one morning, while taking pictures, by Luke Williams, who thinks she is taking his picture.

It was a nice set up for a nice light read

However

So all in all, a 2.5 at most 3 star for me. I am always a sucker for a HEA.
I will be reading book 1.5 and book 2 in the series, 1, because I have already bought them, and 2, I am actually interested to read them.

Profile Image for Christy.
4,467 reviews35.8k followers
February 3, 2015
Come Away with me is a sexy, steamy, and swoony contemporary romance.

Natalie is a photographer who is out early taking photos at the beach when she is confronted by a hot guy yelling at her for her camera. At first she thinks he is trying to mug her, but when he calms down after looking at her photos and explains that he values his privacy and thought she was taking photos of him, it gets cleared up.
Luke feels terrible for acting the way he did and being thrilled that Natalie doesn't know who he is, he asks her out for breakfast. She says no, but later in the day they run into each other again and end up going out for drinks. They are both extremely attracted to one another and end up spending a lot of time together. As their relationship develops, Natalie really opens up to Luke in a way she never has before, at the same time, he isn't being honest with her about who he really is...

Luke Williams... Wow. What a charming and swoony guy! He was almost too perfect. He was romantic, spoils her, cooks for her, gets her Starbucks delivered (that would win my heart) and the roses, foot rubs, and of course his many other talents... It's no wonder Natalie falls for him so easily!
"I've fallen in love with a beautiful,sexy, sweet, jealous control freak. Shit."
Natalie is a likable and relatable character. She has had tragedy in her life and doesn't get too close to a lot of people. Love her her hidden tattoos. She is loyal and feisty (when she went off on Luke's sister :-) Luke and Natalie both had great family and friends that contributed a lot to the story.

This story was sweet, romantic, and steamy... Holy wow was it steamy! And Luke had to be one of the most swoony guys ever! The cover is stunning, and the lack of major angst/drama was a nice change. Great ending, especially the epilogue in Luke's pov <3 excited to start Jules and Nate's story: Fight with me...
Read & enjoy!
Profile Image for Jamie.
1,044 reviews966 followers
November 11, 2012
3.5 Stars.. Did I like this book ? Yes.. did I love it? Unfortunitly, no.. The first quarter of the book was really good.. I really liked how Luke and Natalie met on the beach--that was really cute. The chemistry was for sure there in the beginning, and throughout the book but come mid ways through the book it just all seemed repetitious.. Meet at Nats house, have sex , meet at Lukes house, have sex, back and forth. Don't get me wrong, the sex scenes were really steamy and sweet, but sometimes the talking was just wierd.. him constantly saying "my love" or " come, my love".. not come as in "come here" but come as in the big O. Just seemed wierd.. " come my love". Luke whined a lot and was very jealous and it was not a sexy alpha jealous.. it was like a whiney baby jealous. All in all, it was a good fluff read, something to kind of clean my pallet of the angsty YA's i've been reading lately. There was not too much to think abour or worry about or wonder about.. I would probably classify this one as a good beach read. I was going back and forth with it.. sometimes was really in to it, then I would struggle with getting through a few chapters. Alot of people have really liked it though..
Profile Image for Auntee.
1,351 reviews1,457 followers
January 5, 2014
Sometimes I thought the hero, former movie idol Luke (who had professional similarities to Robert Pattinson but no way did he look like him) was almost too good to be true (sweet, kind, generous, protective, incredibly sexy) and at other times I thought this guy might be hard to live with, because he was also a little too protective, needy, insecure, and with a jealous streak. But I've seen him in the later books (one advantage of reading the books way out of order) and he seems to be falling in the too-good-to-be-true category. So yeah, he's totally swoon-worthy to me.

Luke...you just kept bringing Paul Walker to mind...

 photo paulwalker2_zps3bc3626c.jpg

I liked the book, and the whole series so far, even though there's not a whole lot of conflict going on. Just a whole lot of hot sex, some minor misunderstandings, and for the most part, the H/h have no problems expressing their love for one another. Basically just some feel good romances.

If I had one complaint about the whole series so far (and this is minor though irksome) I wish the author would employ a better editor, one who knows something about grammar. I thought maybe this was just going to be a problem in the first book, but I see it's carried on the whole series.

Otherwise I've been enjoying reading about the fabulously hot Mongomerys and their extended family. 4 1/2 stars
Profile Image for Sabrina.
4,167 reviews2,374 followers
Read
September 21, 2017
I love this story but I couldn't get into this audio at all. The narrators voice just wasn't the one for me and I hated that you could sometimes hear her taking deep breaths before talking. I also found the sex scenes very awkward to listen to her read so I actually started to skip over those. Seeing as the same narrator does this whole series I highly doubt I'll be listening to anymore from it.

Audio rating: 2 Stars
Story rating: 4 Stars
Profile Image for Natasha is a Book Junkie.
690 reviews4,753 followers
November 14, 2012
“I wake to the sun across my face and no covers over my naked body. Luke’s face is between my legs.”

I sometimes seriously wonder what all these turbulent romantic stories that I ravenously read have done to my perception of ‘romance’ itself and it is books like this one that amplify those questions in my head even more. Why is it that I feel like I need industrial quantities of angst in a fictional relationship to feel satisfied at the end of it? Has my romance-sensor become broken??

This is a lovely story of two alike individuals unknowingly looking for the same things in life. Their chance encounter starts as a disaster but it blossoms into attraction that neither of them are able to suppress. Natalie is an independent professional, a kind and generous friend, with no immediate family and scars from her past that never properly healed. She is a reformed former wild child whose priorities in life became clear to her when she suddenly found herself with no loving family of her own. When she loves, she loves deeply and wholeheartedly, but she rarely opens her heart to a man.
“… when I was in college, I didn’t think much of myself. And therefore, neither did anyone else. I didn’t date as a choice …. But sex was something I understood. I’ve never wanted to feel anything else for a man.”

Luke’s life has been the polar opposite of Natalie’s. While her career as a photographer allows her to hide behind the lens and make others express the intensity of emotions that she keeps buried inside, Luke has lived in and been deeply burned by the limelight. As a former movie star, he now lives in constant fear of being recognised and of people invading his privacy. Their connection is initially born out of anonymity, Natalie not recognising Luke, but their growing connection has nothing to do with who they are and everything to do with what they crave in life the most - someone to trust their heart with.

As their relationship develops it simply flat-lines. They are faced with very few bumps in the road, making this decidedly the least angsty love story I have ever read. Even when they fight, they forgive each other soon after - they simply float in their blissful little love bubble, building their relationship rather than tearing it down, perhaps offering us doomed angst-addicted romantics a different point of view on love in general. There is a certain desperation to their connection, a hopeless need to stay together and fight to make it work, making this a story of ‘staying together’ rather than ‘fighting not to break up’.
“Don’t leave me.” He holds onto me tightly, clenching his eyes shut.

As perfect and smooth as the path before them might seem to us, this desperation is evident in the jealousy they are both guilty of nursing. Being well aware of the rarity of what they found in each other, they are confronted with the green-eyed-monster that they never knew they had in them. They are territorial, demanding, possessive and controlling, but they are also all those things equally, and it somehow works for them.
“You had your hands on her and the look on your face was the one you give me when you smile at me … You effectively ripped my heart out and stomped it to dust with just one look … Luke, I don’t want you anywhere near that woman. I don’t want you to work with her.”

If there is one thing that didn’t quite work for me it would have to be the abundant use of complimentary adjectives to describe the characters, both in dialogues as well as narrative. Luke’s ‘perfection’ in Natalie’s eyes is pointed out a few times too many, making the reader somewhat uncomfortable and exhausted from all the instances - “He is simply a Greek God. His body is perfect in every way.” However, all the well-written and deliciously visual hot lovin’ scenes make up for it and then some. They are sensual, they are toe-curling and they will make you gasp for more.

If there is a hopeless romantic somewhere in your DNA, look no further - this is the book for you. It made me question my tainted little heart but I most definitely struggled to put it down.

~ N ♥

See this review on my blog! | Follow me on Facebook!
Profile Image for Kelli Maine.
Author 20 books1,281 followers
October 26, 2012
Sexy as hell!! Where is MY Luke? That's what I was left asking myself, because I WANT ONE OF HIM.

Nat is the woman he never thought he'd find, and he wasn't anyone she was looking for. But they slammed into each other and that was IT for both of them.

It wasn't smooth sailing for them, but when the water was calm, the heat was turned WAY UP and when it was rocky, you had faith they'd find their way.

I'm anxious to get glimpses of Like and Nat's future together in Jule's story - Fight With Me!
Profile Image for Maria.
457 reviews48 followers
November 2, 2014

I'm about 30% in on my Kindle on this, and I am debating with myself whether or not to keep going. On the one hand, I love the idea of the celebrity man/normal woman romance. It's got a certain fairytale appeal for me. I love reading those sorts of romance, which is why I wanted to read this. On the other hand... The two main characters really piss me off and I don't know if I can keep going, or whether they'll end up growing on me (like a fungus).



I guess what turned me off was the fact that even though Natalie had no friggin clue who Luke was, or the fact that she initially thought that he was mugging her for her camera, or the fact that he is clearly keeping things from her (and she's fully aware of this fact)... She ends up at his house (alone) at the end of the day.. Um HELLO?!? I know he's a movie star... But does she??? Does she normally go to random strangers houses in the hopes of jumping their bones?? Are you really that hard up honey??



Luke's not any better.. His mood swings are enough to turn anyone off.. He's surprised, suspicious, joyful, horrified, sincere, wary, lustful, pissed off - Jesus Christ!! That's just the first day of meeting him... Then she goes to his house??? Just because he's hot and charming she doesn't think he's a serial killer?? I'm pretty sure Ted Bundy was described as good looking and charming too.. Didn't stop him.



Anyway, I might leave the story for now and probably get back to it another time... Unless someone can convince me to go on...

Profile Image for Lady Gabriella of Awesomeness (SLOW).
522 reviews823 followers
March 5, 2015
Come away with me and we'll kiss...On a mountaintop
Come away with me And I'll never stop loving you...



And I want to wake up with the rain,Falling on a tin roof
While I'm safe there in your arms...So all I ask is for you
To come away with me in the night
Come away with me


The novel 'come away with me' by Kristen Proby happens to be a rather stickily,sweet romance read that revolves around our leads,Natalie and Luke, who great ,meet and fall in love.


Natalie is a free lace photographer who looses herself into her shots by the ocean until she gets knocked down by a random stranger demanding for her camera. little did she know that her handsome ,sexy mugger just happened to be none other that, the star of the successful nightwear series, brooding vampire male lead , Luke Williams.


intally i found the story to be rather cliche and predictable:she meets him,donst recognize him,he decides to lie by omission ,which of course blows up on his face...they break up,kiss & make up .ALL IN A SPAN OF ONE WEEK and for the first 50%,e-book wise.


unbelievable.... i know......


i found the first half part,to be hugely irritating (because people don't just declare themselves with 7 days ,no matter how strong their mutual attraction is...) plus i found the story too be too sweet and happy to be a realistic.The love between them developed too quickly for my liking leaving me with absolutely nothing to relate to in a way...


the 2nd half of the book was more fast paced and enjoyable comparatively.Luke and Natalie went into a complete honeymoon phase ,with-in THEIR SECOND WEEK OF DATING ,with loads of wines...vacations and with a bunch of oh my !......oh !..wow ! 's and with a heck loads of (panting)"what have you done to me ?" seriously :p

recommendations :there's absolutely NO ANGST OR EMOTIONAL DRAMA in this one,so guys please unless your searching for sunshine and sparkling rainbows don't pick this.

overall, it wasn't that bad,just a normal peak at a normal couple living a normal life. over that ? nothing much.the characters were ok..(no alpha male lead here) and the story line was nice and smooth making it a definite one-time read.

3 sugary stars for a slice of sweet love with a wisp of erotica and good-old fashioned love.
Profile Image for Tammy .
1,018 reviews117 followers
November 11, 2012
I was wicked excited when Come Away with Me released as the buildup to the book was phenomenal. It was getting 4/5 star ratings all over the board. Friends on my Goodreads absolutely loved this debut novel. Therefore, I bought my copy as soon as I saw the link was up and available. How could I not, come on the cover is hot and the sample about the book draws you right in.

Here comes the hard part. Yes, giving a not so good review is hard for me. Have you ever had that book that everyone loved, and for some reason you just are not getting into it. I have, and this book was one of those for me. I sat there the entire time wondering what in the hell I was missing. I just could not figure it out. I went back and read reviews, hoping to find the spark I was missing from this book. I wanted so much to enjoy this read as others did. I just could not connect with the story or the characters, well at least not until the last few chapters or so. The ending saved this story for me, it was here that I saw the potential this debut novel held for other readers.

A major turn off for me in this book was the over use of the words “baby” and “beautiful” . I found it really hard to get past those words to focus on the story. In addition, I have a really hard time reading a book that centers around sex as the main part of the book. I love sex in my stories do not get me wrong, but I prefer more story and plot than sex scenes every other page. I tend to lose interest in them really fast , that much sex makes me skip pages. I know lots of woman love books like this and truly, this is not a reflection on the author it is just a personal preference. For me, less is more. Even with all the sex, I did not feel any chemistry for the characters.

On too Luke, well I think this quote in the book describes him perfectly……

“I’ve fallen in love with a beautiful, sexy, sweet, jealous control freak.”

Seriously, this guy had mood swings worse than a chick pmsing. One sec he is all happy go lucky, at a drop of a hat he is pissed over something, and then within seconds he was right back to lovey dovey. I cannot handle moods like that. It makes it very hard to like a character and makes my own moods fluctuated way too much. I prefer a more stable ride and I thrive on drama. He was very controlling, Natalie could not even do her job without his damn temper tantrums. I get not wanting her to be with a single male client, but dude it was her damn job. A job she was nervous to tell you about and it seemed she had every reason to be. Now do not get me wrong Luke also had a very sweet side, sometimes making him seem too good to be true.

I liked Natalie, she seemed like she had a good head on her shoulders, and stood up for herself when need be along with protecting Luke at the same time. Although she was prone to some teenage dramatic outbursts. She also suffered enough tragedy in life that she valued certain aspects of it. One of the things I loved about her was the quotes about life she had tatted on her body in different languages. Something she only shared with those she loved.

“ One Step at a Time.”

Now to the part that snagged this book for me. The last few chapters were great. This is where I got my character chemistry. My friend actually told me to skip everything in the middle and skip to the end. Although I was not fond of ¾ of the book, I am glad I did not skip it. I think it made me appreciate this part even more. There was build up, there was drama, and then there was a yummy epilogue!

“ No, I don’t want to start over because that would mean erasing everything we’ve had and honestly, aside from yesterday, the past few days have been really good.”
Profile Image for • Lisa •.
563 reviews1,573 followers
November 16, 2012
2.5 Stars - There wasn't anything really wrong with this book (except for the annoyingly over use of the term 'beautiful') it just didn't have enough story telling or depth for me. It was all a bit too easy - boy meets girl fall in love (way to quickly) throw in a few arguments, wham bam then ends the story, there was a lovely happily ever after ... Maybe there is such a thing as a book being too nice. Just a little drab for me sadly, but an ok read.
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