Blog Tour: ARC Review + Giveaway: Romancing the Bookworm by Kate Evangelista

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Title: Romancing the Bookworm
Author: Kate Evangelista
Format acquired: eARC (PDF)
Publisher: Omnific Publishing
Publication date: July 9th 2013
Source: Received from blog host (Thanks, AToMR Book Blog Tour and Kate!)
Buy the book: Amazon / Barnes and Noble



Sometimes, even the best-laid plans can unravel.

It's spring break, and Tamara Winters would rather stay on campus and read romance novels than flaunt her size-fourteen body on a beach. But her best friend, Rony, has other ideas. Against her wishes, Tamara is whisked away to picturesque Maverick Bay, where she's wrangled into waiting tables with Rony at the Shore Shack for its busy week leading to Maverick's Surf Invitational. There she meets fellow schoolmate Xavier Solomon, the Invitational's organizer and campus womanizer by reputation. From the moment Tamara sees him emerging from the waves like a hero in of one of her romance novels, all she wants to do is run away from the feelings he inspires in her.

Little does she know Xavier has been watching her for weeks now. In fact, after failed attempts at asking her out on campus, he's concocted a crazy plan: fabricating romantic situations straight out of her favorite books. Xavier quickly realizes that if Tamara gets a whiff of his designs, he might as well spell CREEPER across his forehead. Yet as they grow closer, he's convinced it's a risk worth taking. What he hasn't planned on, of course, is his drug-addicted, alcoholic stepbrother, who decides to join the fun and put a wrench in Xavier’s scheme.

Spring break is proving hotter than Tamara expected. Will her romance novels be able to compete?

(Image and summary provided by AToMR Book Blog Tours.)

Review:

I was actually pretty confused as to why Romancing the Bookworm's first title was "Maverick". I got that it was the place the book was mainly set up in, but I felt that it didn't really have the same pull as the new title. I don't know why I bothered even mentioning it, I just felt like I should. LOL Anyhoo, moving on...

Like I've constantly said, I love it when an author is so diverse (you know, being able to write good books in different genres) and Kate Evangelista is legit one of those authors. I didn't completely love Romancing the Bookworm as much as her other books but it definitely appealed to my New Adult addiction. Hot guy + reader protag + beach setting = swoon to the max! You just know that that combination will be deadly. One of the things I really enjoyed about Romancing the Bookworm is that it is such a chill and sweet book! It's so hard to find a book that lets you relax and is enjoyable without the angst and anger. And oh. Em. Gee. Xavier! Massive swoon. More on him later.

I like to think of myself as a really avid reader but when I read about Tamara, but reader confidence level went down a couple notches. That girl knows her books and while that's very appealing her love for books is borderline obsessive. I'm kind of like Tamara in a few ways, I'd rather read than party, I'd rather mentally ogle fictional boys than real ones and let's face it, I love book steam more than the real life one (you know what I'm talkin' 'bout. *wink wink*) I was pretty excited for Tamara when her best friend, whose name eludes me, forced her to go to the beach with her to work at her brother's bar (did I mention that it's a hot brother. Hehe!) I felt relieved knowing that she'd finally get her exposure and actually see real human being (I'm teasing here.) Tamara has the cutest reactions to things and when she first saw Xavier? Priceless.

Xavier definitely has that "wow"-factor when you read about him, he's what romance novels are made of. He's the dreamy guy that we all swoon about and the thing with him is that he's actually a pretty compassionate person. I love that he notices the little things and the fact he noticed a girl reading, hiding away from the rest of the human population? It's just the sweetest thing ever. I think the reason why I totally dug Xavier is because I'm sort of *cough* creepy at times as well. Most people would think that what he did was pretty creepy but it was really the thought that counted. And Xavier really put a lot of thought into Tamara.

Tamara and Xavier's story wasn't the only one I enjoyed. I loved reading about the connected between Tamara's best friend and Xavier's druggie brother. It was pretty sad but entertaining (evil Louisse.) Oh and I am crossing my fingers for a story about Tamara's best friend's brother. He's swoony too! I just realized how bad I am with names. Haha!

I enjoyed Romancing the Bookworm and it was a pretty decent New Adult novel. It had the right amount of steam and drama to not make it overkill or gross but it did have a couple of flaws, as well. It's a book I'd recommend to people who just want something light to read and enjoy because Romancing the Bookworm is both those things.

Rating:

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About the author:

When Kate Evangelista was told she had a knack for writing stories, she did the next best thing: entered medical school. After realizing she wasn't going to be the next Doogie Howser, M.D., Kate wandered into the Literature department of her university and never looked back. Today, she is in possession of a piece of paper that says to the world she owns a Literature degree. To make matters worse, she took Master's courses in creative writing. Ms. Evangelista lives in the Philippenes.

You can find her here:

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