Tag Archives: romance

Review: Searching for Someday

Posted in Books, Entertainment by

I bought this book from my local Dymocks and then left it at work and assumed I had lost it and then began to throw a tantrum because I was looking forward to reading it that much. So did Searching for Someday worth the hype of throwing a tantrum over? Let’s find out!

The first of a new saucy series by Jennifer Probst. (SOURCE: Jennifer Probst's website)

The first of a new saucy series by Jennifer Probst. (SOURCE: Jennifer Probst’s website)

Searching for Someday by Jennifer Probst is the first of a series that follows the life of Kate, who may or may not be a witch. She has this “gift” from her ancestors that she can sense when two people are meant to be together just by touching them. Intense right? So she uses her powers for good and has started a matchmaking agency with her two friends. Kate is a beautiful virgin who keeps to herself and has no time for man, until Slade Montgomery walks in – the hot divorce lawyer who wants to take Kate’s matchmaking agency to the shedhouse for being a “scam”. A matchmaker and a divorce lawyer… sounds like a total mess, doesn’t it?

The storyline was okay. I wasn’t appalled by it but at the same time I wasn’t too enthralled by it (totes rhymed!) As most love and romance novels are easily predictable, I didn’t go into this book expecting much. But this story was so predictable that I pretty much didn’t have to finish it to figure out the ending, but at least the track towards the destination was great. The intense, erotic chemistry between Kate and Slade was interesting to read and their interactions were almost always entertaining. Their first kiss after that yoga session was… oh golly.

I am clearly an avid reader of adult romance novels and am very familiar with how a written sex scene goes. If a sex scene is done well, it comes off great and can even get the reader “in the mood”. If it isn’t written well, however, it comes off as dirty and trashy and it gives adult romance novels a bad name. One thing that I cannot stand in sex scenes is the use of the “p word” for vagina. Unfortunately for Probst, she used the “p word” freely during the intimate moments of the novel and it completely ruined the scene for me. I just think that there are so many words for vagina nowadays that you can use any one of them and still be better than the “p word”. If one word is going to be a let down in the novel – and warrant an entire paragraph in a book review – then that is saying something.

As a character, Kate was passable. She had her funny moments and she was easily relatable and likeable, especially with her ADORABLE dedication to her dog Robert, but other than that, she had the “typical romance book heroine” character to her – insecure, shy, unaware of how hot she is, etc. Slade’s character was also quite the romance book stereotype of being cocky, wealthy and arrogant but had the body of Adonis. I didn’t particularly love either one of them but they were both easily likeable so that’s definitely a plus.

Solst-o-meter
Storyline: 6.5/10
Style of writing: 6.5/10
Overall: 6.5/10

Searching for Someday is a solid read if you’re looking for a hot, steamy love affair between two polar opposite characters. If this is any indication of how the rest of the series will go, we should be in for a ride.

– by The Black Widow

Review: A Beautiful Wedding

Posted in Books, Entertainment by

Here’s a little short story to lead into this book review.

I hate reading books on my iPhone or any other electronic device. I was fine growing up reading books with the tangible book in my hand and I will always be fine with the real deal, so when I found out that Jamie McGuire had released a Beautiful Disaster series novella, I was chomping at the bits to get it. With my luck, however, I could not find the paperback version, so I resorted to buying the book on my iPhone. I finished the book after several tears shed… nekk minnit, I see the paperback version everywhere. That’s just my luck.

RELATED LINKS:
Solstice Satisfaction reviews Beautiful Disaster
Solstice Satisfaction reviews Walking Disaster

Enough about me, onwards to SS in Review! Travis Maddox and Abby Abernathy/Maddox are back! Jamie McGuire must’ve heard me whining for more TrAbby interaction, so A Beautiful Wedding was released!

NOTE: If you haven’t read Beautiful Disaster and/or Walking Disaster yet, there will be some spoilers in here. I totally suggest you read these before continuing, also because they’re phenom.

 

I'm so glad I bought this copy after I finished the digital version... not.

I’m so glad I bought this copy after I finished the digital version… not.

In case Walking Disaster didn’t fill in all the gaps for you in Travis and Abby’s love story, A Beautiful Wedding will fill in the rest. Why did Abby and Travis run off and get married in the first place? How was the wedding? Who was there to witness the two lovebirds get married? Well, all your questions will be answered in this novella that fills in the gaps of Travis and Abby’s wedding day (and night) in a way only Jamie McGuire can describe. A Beautiful Wedding details the events of the infamous Maddox wedding, the “second wedding” and their respective bachelor/bachelorette parties, and all the fun stuff in between.

The first thing I’m going to say is this… I still feel as if Travis and Abby’s story isn’t complete yet. I mean, without trying to spoil too much, Abby’s true motivation for wanting to marry Travis still hasn’t been revealed to the tattooed hunk and if I were him, I’d be royally pissed if I found out. That one fact alone just makes me feel as if there is still more to the story that needs to be told. If Travis ever finds out, how will he react? What will that mean for Pidge and Maddox? I’m sure they’d still be as rocksolid as ever, however.

Travis and Abby’s relationship is magical. I feel as if I’m a part of it; I felt it when I read Beautiful Disaster, I felt as I read Walking Disaster, and all those months later, I felt it with this novella. Jamie McGuire has done superb work with the Beautiful Disaster series in capturing the true love between these two damaged young adults. I was dying to get some more Travis and Abby and I’m glad I found it with this one. A Beautiful Wedding‘s purpose was to fill in gaps that readers were wondering… there was no real other point to this book, so it serves its purpose well.

Solst-o-meter
Storyline: 7/10
Style of writing: 8/10
Overall: 7.5/10

A Beautiful Wedding was short and sweet and, as stated before, served its purpose well. I’m just sad that I felt all those feelings reading it just to have it cut off at the best part! HOW CUTE IS AMERICA’S DAD. That’s all for now, but Jamie McGuire, if you’re reading this… feel free to release another in this series. I’m not finished with Travis and Abby yet.

– by The Black Widow

How to Catch a Catfish

Posted in Lifestyle by

You just found the cutest guy/babenest girl on Tinder and you’re chatting up a storm with them. They seem so perfect for you… almost too perfect.

With the internet nowadays, especially online dating apps like Tinder and Blendr, one has to be very careful when getting close with someone you only know through an app or website. It could turn out that your guy that resembles Ryan Gosling turns out to be a whale named Brutus. Literally. A whale.

You could be talking to this if you're not careful... (SOURCE: Brian Henderson's Flickr.)

You could be talking to this if you’re not careful… (SOURCE: Brian Henderson’s Flickr.)

The term catfish was born from the film with the same name that played on the aspect of someone being fooled online… and thus, the term was born. The concept of catfishing is so popular that it has warranted its own TV show that reunites online lovers and figures out whether they’re real or not.

As a true investigative journalist, I went seeking a catfish on a dating app. I found one. It took me all of five minutes to figure out that I was being catfished and after I caught them out, I asked them questions as a journalist as to why they did what they did. I use the word “they” because I don’t know if it was a female or male that I was talking to.

“Knowing what people are like, they would never go for me,” he/she said.

I asked them if they would ever go that far that they make someone fall for them, and they replied emphatically: “Trust me, it has and I would never let it get that far.”

If you’re having worries that your seemingly special someone is actually fake, there a few handy tips to get around the situation without alerting the other person that you’re onto them:

Tip #1: Request a very specific picture of them
Assuming that you are quite close with this person, sneak in a very specific picture request from them. For example, if the person has a tattoo, ask them for a close-up picture of said tattoo. If they send you one, don’t be sold yet that they’re real – they might just had luck with stealing someone else’s pictures. If that person has shown you his/her cute nephew, ask for a cute picture of them two together. If they turn down either one of these seemingly simple requests, chances are that your lover is a fake.

Tip #2: Ask them details about their life, and then repeat
So your lover has a picture of them and their sister together, ask what the sister’s name is. Sandra? Oh that’s a nice name. Write that down. A week later, and you’ve happened to forget their sister’s name. “Oh what was it again?” Jenny. “Oh that’s interesting, because I thought her name was Sandra.” Caught out. Most catfishes don’t keep track of the lies they spit out so chances are you’ll catch them out with a well thought-out plan like that. And don’t fall for the “Oh Jenny is her real name, Sandra is her middle name” bullcrap. It doesn’t work.

Tip #3: Request meet-ups with no real intention of meeting up
You have doubts that your person is real, so do the simple thing and “go that step further in your relationship” – request a face-to-face meeting. If your catfish has a soul, they’ll politely turn down the meeting with an ignorant excuse of some sort. Go along with it, and then request another meeting. The same thing’ll happen, and you’ll know the answer. You’re being catfished. Sorry.

As always, be wary of who you talk to online. You can’t trust a pretty face on an app just because it’s, well, pretty.

– by The Black Widow

Common Romantic Misconceptions of Romeo and Juliet

Posted in Entertainment by

Because really, Romeo and Juliet isn’t that romantic.

When girls talking about finding their dream man, they will often refer to him as their “Romeo”. Guys don’t often talk to each other about feelings, but I’m sure if they do, they’ll call her their “Juliet”. I’d hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Romeo and Juliet aren’t as romantic as society makes them out to be. It seems as if people are too distracted by the artsy Shakespearean language to really understand what the characters are trying to say.

Don't be fooled by these young actors. They are misleading you! (CREDIT: Z. Smith Reynolds Library Flickr)

Don’t be fooled by these young actors. They are misleading you! (CREDIT: Z. Smith Reynolds Library Flickr)

Alas, as a Shakespeare enthusiast and all-around badass, I am here to set you straight and/or ruin your hopes and dreams.

Example one: The nurse and Juliet gossip like frivolous teenage girls
Picture two young women talking to each other about a man in today’s society. I’m sure their conversation would be along the lines of “Oh yeah, would bang” or “OMG put a baby in me.” Not in the slightest bit romantic, is it? That is exactly how Juliet and her nurse were talking about Romeo. “Why, he’s a man of wax”, a line that is famously quoted by Juliet, loosely translates into 21st century English and becomes “Crikey I’d go him.” Truth? Maybe. Romantic? Not unless you’re solely cruising for a root.

Example two: That balcony scene
This may be a bit too much for those who think this is the pinnacle of romance in cultural arts. It isn’t. Sorrynotsorry. Let’s start with the obvious one: Romeo is quite literally creeping on Juliet. I’m sure young ladies nowadays would freak out if they saw a guy watching them through their window muttering to themselves, so if it’s unacceptable now, why is it romantic a couple of hundred years ago? Creeper. Also, “It is the east and Juliet is the sun!” is, unfortunately, translated to “Farrrk I think she’s farrrkin’ hawt.” I guess it wouldn’t be so bad if he wasn’t creeping at her through the window.

Example three: I’d be sad if you died, but…
My (man’s) best friend died nearly four years ago now, God bless his soul. I wasn’t with him at the time of his passing which only added to the heartache I felt when I originally found out he had left me. Was I sad? Absolutely. I cried for that whole day and would often cry days later. Would I kill myself whilst sitting right next to him just so I could “be” with him? Um. No. This may be me sounding a tad cynical but what is so romantic about Romeo and Juliet killing themselves for each other? That is tragic and a tad bit obsessive. Not romantic at all.

Example four: Five minutes later
Granted, the star cross’d lovers probably had a bit more than five minutes to get to know each other, but they didn’t know each other all that long before they were prepared to give their lives for each other. I guess it’s kind of romantic, like the tiniest bit, but it’s intense and creepy overall. How would you feel if you met someone off Tinder and after their date, they were planning to kill themselves for you? Yes. Case closed.

I’m sure there are more examples I could use to highlight my point but you get the idea. Romeo and Juliet is not as romantic as it seems. Case closed. Soz not soz.

– by The Black Widow