All Broke Down by Cora Cormack

Author: Cora Cormack
Publisher: William Morrow
Date of publication: October 2014

Dylan fights for lost causes. Probably because she used to be one.
Environmental issues, civil rights, corrupt corporations, and politicians you name it, she's probably been involved in a protest. When her latest cause lands her in jail overnight, she meets Silas Moore. He's in for a different kind of fighting. And though he's arrogant  and infuriating, she can't help being fascinated with him. Yet another lost cause.

Football and trouble are the only things that have ever come naturally to Silas. And it's trouble that lands him in a cell next to do-gooder Dylan. He's met girls like her before fixers, he calls them, desperate to heal the damage and make him into their ideal boyfriend. But he doesn't think he's broken, and he definitely doesn't need a girlfriend trying to change him. Until, that is, his anger issues and rash decisions threaten the only thing he really cares about: his spot on the Rusk University football team. Dylan might just be the perfect girl to help.  Because Silas Moore needs some fixing after all.

All Broke Down is the second in the Rusk University series.  I will admit that I liked this book a little more than the first book, All Lined Up (my review).   Dylan and Silas meet while in jail.  Dylan has been arrested at a demonstration and Silas for a bar fight.  Their attraction was strong from the beginning, but they try to keep things casual despite falling hard for each other.

The characters were a little more realistic to me. Silas is definitely a result of his upbringing.  He is hot tempered and quick to believe he isn't worth a better life.  He has high hopes that his football career will help him move on to bigger and better things.  Dylan was adopted as a child and has felt she must be perfect in order to stay with her adoptive parents. This has kind of held her back from having fun.. I thought the two of them were good for each other. I loved watching Silas help Dylan come to of her shell and loosen up a little.  Their relationship wasn't easy, but I was rooting for them to figure things out.  

The only thing I didn't like about this book was the ending with Stella.  I won't spoil it, but I didn't like that it was almost an afterthought with no resolution. It just didn't fit with the story-line. The next book, All Played Out (coming May 2015), doesn't look like it is Stella's so I'm disappointed to have to wait to see how everything is resolved.   

All Lined Up by Cora Carmack

Author: Cora Cormack
Publisher: William Morrow
Date of publication:

Dallas Cole loathes football. That's what happens when you spend your whole childhood coming in second to a sport. College is her time to step out of the bleachers, and put the playing field (and the players) in her past.

But life doesn't always go as planned. As if going to the same college as her football star ex wasn’t bad enough, her father, a Texas high school coaching phenom, has decided to make the jump to college ball… as the new head coach at Rusk University. Dallas finds herself in the shadows of her father and football all over again.

Carson McClain is determined to go from second-string quarterback to the starting line-up. He needs the scholarship and the future that football provides. But when a beautiful redhead literally falls into his life, his focus is more than tested. It's obliterated.

Dallas doesn't know Carson is on the team. Carson doesn't know that Dallas is his new coach's daughter.

I really enjoyed Ms. Carmack's "Losing It" series, so I had high hopes for this new series.  I wasn't disappointed.  I thought All Lined Up was an entertaining read about two people who are destined for each other, no matter how much they fight it.  Dallas grew up on football and after a disastrous relationship n high school, she has vowed to never date a football player again.  Carson really needs a scholarship and must focus on football to obtain it.  He doesn't need any distractions in his life.  When sparks fly between the two, both Dallas and Carson find their worlds turned upside down.

For a relatively short book, there is a lot packed into it.  Dallas has had to deal with an emotionally distant father her whole life.  She has also had to live with being the "coach's daughter" and all of the implications and misconceptions that go along with that.  So, she really has a lot of baggage.  I think that Carson was a good balance for her.  He helped her go for what she wanted. She helped him find confidence in himself.   I loved that they slowed things down and spent sometime being friends before falling into bed.  In fact, I the book is pretty mild on that front which is refreshing for a New Adult book.  

I think fans of the Losing It series will like this new one.  I look forward to the next book, All Broke Down which comes out later this year.

Review: Finding It by Cora Cormack

Author: Cora Cormack
Publisher: William Morrow
Date of publication: October 2013

Sometimes you have to lose yourself to find where you truly belong...

Most girls would kill to spend months traveling around Europe after college graduation with no responsibility, no parents, and no-limit credit cards. Kelsey Summers is no exception. She's having the time of her life . . . or that's what she keeps telling herself.

I think I liked this one the most out of the trilogy. Finding it is Kelsey's Story.  She was Bliss's roommate in Losing It. I'm not sure I have read about a more tortured soul than Kelsey in a while. Her life growing up seems like it was a nightmare.  Her parents lack of love and respect for their child just astounded me.  No wonder she didn't feel like she fit in anywhere.

Instead of using her backpacking trip abroad to take in the sights of Europe, Kelsey partied, drank and hooked up everywhere she went.  When she met Jackson, her world changed.  I loved these two together.  He showed her how to live and experience life in a healthy and fun way.   It wasn't too hard to figure out what Jackson is hiding from Kelsey.  Even suspecting what I did, I still loved their journey.   The ending was perfect.  Throughout the entire book, I was rooting for Kelsey to find peace and a soft place to fall.  I was applauding her decisions that she made in the end.  It showed she truly "got it" and had grown up.

I highly recommend this series.  Cora Cormack knows how to write great New Adult fiction.  I can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

About the author:

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She’s done a multitude of things in her life—retail, theatre, teaching, and writing. She loves theatre, travel, and anything that makes her laugh. She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love too.

Find out more about Cora at her website, connect with her on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter.

Tour Schedule:

Tuesday, October 15th: A Chick Who Reads

Wednesday, October 16th: Into the Hall of Books

Thursday, October 17th: Sara’s Organized Chaos

Tuesday, October 22nd: Reading Reality

Monday, October 28th: Oh! Paper Pages

Tuesday, October 29th: Mom in Love With Fiction

Wednesday, October 30th: Why Girls Are Weird

Thursday, October 31st: From the TBR Pile

Monday, November 4th: Let The Read Books

Thursday, November 7th: Tina’s Book Reviews

Monday, November 11th: Cupcake on Books

Thursday, November 14th: Books a la Mode

Review: Faking It by Cora Cormack

Author: Cora Cormack
Publisher: William Morrow
Date of publication: June 2013

Mackenzie “Max” Miller has a problem. Her parents have arrived in town for a surprise visit, and if they see her dyed hair, tattoos, and piercings, they just might disown her. Even worse, they’re expecting to meet a nice, wholesome boyfriend, not a guy named Mace who has a neck tattoo and plays in a band. All her lies are about to come crashing down around her, but then she meets Cade.

Back in February, I reviewed Losing It, the first in this series.  I was so happy to see Cade get his own story.  I remember feeling so badly for him as he was so in love with Bliss. I really enjoyed Faking It as much as I liked the first one.  The characters are young, but very realistically portrayed.  They are both in search of finding out what kind of adult they want to become. 

In Faking It, Cade finally finds a way to get past his feelings for Bliss.   Max needs a "normal" boyfriend quick to get her parents off her back.  Cade seems to fit the bill perfectly. Max and Cade were perfect for each other. Both they are searching for some type of happiness in their life. I loved Max.  She  has a lot of baggage from growing up, but she is really fighting to be who she wants to be.  Her music is important to her.  I felt really badly at how her family treated her.  I was so happy with how she deals with them in the end.  I thought that, while very different from Max, Cade was so good for her. He called her on her BS and she gave him a reason to finally fight for someone to stay in his life.  This was a great sequel to the series.  I look forward to Finding It next!

Interview & Review: Losing It by Cora Carmack

Welcome to author, Cora Carmack.  She joins us today with an interview as she promoted her new book, Losing It

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Date of publication: October 2012

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible-- a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren't embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognizes her new theater professor. She'd left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

My thoughts:
 I really enjoyed Losing It and found myself not wanting to put it down. It is well written and a pretty quick read. The attraction between Bliss and Garrick was instant and compelling. Their romance was very sweet. The book deals with her "first time" and all of the anxiety and questions that goes along with it. I loved that Bliss followed her gut feeling and waited until it was truly right for her, not because her best friend thought it was a scandal that it hadn't happened yet.  I think that was a great message to send. Along with Bliss' first time, the book deals with a lot of the drama that surround college age adults such as navigating friendships, unrequited love, and what comes after graduation.  

Losing It falls under the new category "New Adult".  Given the fact that the characters are around 21-24years old, I would say this qualifies.  I would keep it to at least upper high school as it deals with sex and drinking. The next book, Faking It comes out this summer.  It's Cade's story.  I felt so badly for him in Losing it, that I am glad he is getting his own book.

Kari& Autumn: What inspired you to become a writer?

Cora: I’m an insatiable reader. I read a lot when I was younger, but especially my last year in high school, I was averaging close to a book a day. Anytime you’re reading that much, I think it’s a natural progression. I got to the point where these ideas were popping into my head for stories I was desperate to read. But they didn’t exist, so I had to write them for myself.

Kari& Autumn: Where do you come up with the ideas for your books?

Cora:  From just about everywhere. I might get a little spark of something from real life or from a conversation or a dream, and then I just keep picking at it until it grows into a full story.

Kari& Autumn: What exciting projects are waiting in the wings?

Cora: Well, in June, my second book titled FAKING IT releases. It’s a companion novel to losing it that follows Cade. As the resident nice guy, he gets swept up into a crazy plot wherein he pretends to be a girl’s boyfriend to please her parents. But since he’s awesome in human form, he impresses them a little too much, and they have to keep faking. Craziness ensues.

I’m also working on a companion novel about Kelsey set after they graduate. Kelsey’s backpacking through Europe having all kinds of crazy adventures. I can’t say much more than that except that I’m LOVING writing this book. And the guy… *swoon*. 

Kari& Autumn: Who is your favorite literary character and why?

Cora: Hermione Granger. Hands down. I grew up on Harry Potter, and I identified with her so much. I, too, was a know-it-all, insatiable reader, and victim of incredibly fuzzy hair. More than that, though, she was strong and brave and beautiful, and I pretty much just want to be her, okay?

Kari& Autumn: Just for fun, if you could be any animal, what would it be and why?

Cora: Dolphin. I’ve always wanted to swim with one, so why not take it a step further and just be one. Plus, all you have to do is do a little jump and people love you. Now, that’s a life I want. 

About the author:

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller. 

website: http://coracarmack.blogspot.com

twitter:   CoraCarmack