From the Bookshelf of Turning Pages At Midnight…

My Life in Shambles

Karina Halle

Start date: May 27, 2019

Finish date: June 2, 2019

Discussion: Buddy Reads

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What Members Thought

Jan 18, 2019 Lisa added it

Shelves: angsty-romance, arc-given-to-blog-for-honest-revie, dying-to-get-my-hands-on, read-in-2019

Review to come.

11 likes · Like · see review

Apr 26, 2019 Natalie M rated it really liked it

Shelves: have-on-kindle, family-drama, bad-boy-hero, cover-lust, filthy-rich-hero, strong-heroine, sports-romance, tattooed-pierced, steamy-read, crazy-good

Sweet sports romance that flowed nicely. You can’t go wrong with this author’s writing and characters!! It was engaging yet low on angst and I really enjoyed it!!

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Apr 11, 2019 Adrienne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: well-written, devoured-it, alternating-pov, made-me-smile, emotional, love-this-author, arc, made-me-cry, 2019-favorites

I don't know what compels you to read a story. For me it can be a number of things, the author, the synopsis, but rarely the cover. I'm not a cover snob, I usually don't care one way or the other. It's the content I'm after. Every now and then a cover will "speak" to me. THIS cover...man did it ever speak to me. I could only hope the content would too.

Karina Halle has become one of my all time favorite authors. I read all her books as soon as they release. I usually know what to expect.. I don't know what compels you to read a story. For me it can be a number of things, the author, the synopsis, but rarely the cover. I'm not a cover snob, I usually don't care one way or the other. It's the content I'm after. Every now and then a cover will "speak" to me. THIS cover...man did it ever speak to me. I could only hope the content would too.

Karina Halle has become one of my all time favorite authors. I read all her books as soon as they release. I usually know what to expect...something amazing, something worth reading. She's an author who pours everything into her stories, whether it's dark, or light, dirty, or sweet, every single story is worth reading. My favorites, tend to be the highly emotional, soul searching, epic loves stories, like Love, in English. If you haven't already read Vera and Mateo's story, you must. To this day, it's still my favorite Halle book. However, My Life in Shambles now holds spot #2.

I'm a firm believer in destiny. Everything we do, is supposed to happen, all the choices we make, the people we meet, the places we go, it all leads in one direction. We are shaped by all of those experiences, and often times we hold ourselves back. We let our fears, our insecurities, our past, keep us from making bold moves, from opening ourselves to new ideas, to saying yes to new adventures.

My Life in Shambles, is about all of those things, to not be afraid to say yes to new people, new places, new adventures. Padraig and Valerie are both at a crossroads in their lives. Neither knows where things are heading, both are afraid of the future. Their stories while, unique and different, are still very much the same. They grapple with deep family issues, with loss, and uncertainty. Together though, they bring this calmness, it's something that allows both of them to see more clearly, to fall in love so quickly.

There are so many things to love in this story. From the Irish setting to the wonderful side characters like Nan and the Major, even Hooter McGavin adds his own beauty to this book. The bonds of family are strong even when they're flawed and sometimes painful.

I cannot adequately express my love for this story. I'm a sucker for the angst, for those couples that feel with all of their being. Who love to hard, you can't ever imagine they would survive apart. Padraig and Valerie are one of those couples. This is their love story and it's epic.* I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader’s Copy of this book * ...more

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Jan 30, 2020 Marta rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary-na-or-adult, ebooks, alternating-povs, road-trip-or-vacay, it-s-only-me, sport-yourself, setting-small-town, disability, it-was-fake-until-it-wasn-t, older-man-younger-woman

4 'to new adventures and beyond' Stars

RTC

It’s funny how you so desperately try to have an adult relationship with your parents but after a while you all revert back to the way you used to be.

Everything will change.
It takes a moment to change someone.
Sometimes it just takes a kiss.
I know this before it happens.

“But why is insecurity considered a weakness? It’s just being human. We all have things to feel insecure about. No shame in it. We work on it, we get better. It’s all part of the experie 4 'to new adventures and beyond' Stars

RTC

It’s funny how you so desperately try to have an adult relationship with your parents but after a while you all revert back to the way you used to be.

Everything will change.
It takes a moment to change someone.
Sometimes it just takes a kiss.
I know this before it happens.

“But why is insecurity considered a weakness? It’s just being human. We all have things to feel insecure about. No shame in it. We work on it, we get better. It’s all part of the experience, right? Doesn’t our true strength lie in the fact that we know our flaws, that we’re self-aware, that we want to improve?”

The best I can say is that she reminds me of the first day of spring. Not the arbitrary date in March, but that first real day when the sun is out and the air is fresh and you close your eyes and you can almost feel yourself being reborn again.

“You are fierce, Valerie Stephens. A wild bird that could fly away but chooses to stay with me, and I am forever grateful for that. Believe me, I am.”

“Mo chuisle mo chroi. It’s Gaelic. It means, my pulse of my heart.”
“You are the pulse of my heart and the thread of my existence and all I ever want is to go on loving you until my dying days.”

“What happens when I can’t hold ye?” “Padraig,” I say softly. “You know you can’t think like that. None of us have a certain amount of time allotted to us and for all of us it goes too fast. You just have to live each moment that you can and just love as much as you can.” “That’s not enough,” he says. “It will never be enough, not with you.”

“This is all me. This is my body and that’s all it is. I am worth more than this. This body does not dictate how much love I get or how much respect I’ll get or how smart I am or how kind I am or how far I’ll get in life. It doesn’t dictate who loves me and it doesn’t dictate who finds me attractive.”

“Yes, it is. I’ve lost a lot too, don’t you forget it. But that should only make you hang onto your loved ones tighter. The heart is made for love and therefore it’s made for loss. And just because you broke it off now to prevent future pain doesn’t mean you’re not suffering now. You are suffering, I see it all over ye, and it’s not going to get any better. Just like your affliction, it’s going to get worse. If you go on without Valerie in your life, you’re going to regret it with every single breath you take.”
“But what if …”
“You’re coming from a place of fear, not faith.”

“No, you have it all wrong, ye do. Life is brilliant. And then it’s awful. Sometimes trivial or boring or mundane. You just have to push through all that bad stuff until its brilliant again. Always hold out for brilliant.” ...more

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