On Tour: This One's For You by Brandy Jellum - Review + Excerpt

Brandy Jellum is now on tour with CLP Blog Tours with her book, This One's For You. Please visit her page for more blog stops.

This One's For You
by Brandy Jellum

Genre: Drama, New Adult, Romance
Publication: Published July 24th, 2015 by Booktrope
Format: ebook
Source: ARC, CLP Blog Tours
Connect: Website | Facebook | Twitter
Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

All alone in a new state, Brennan Daniels has only the memories of her best friend, Reagan, to keep her company as she starts college.

Reagan is the reason for everything Brennan does—before she died, she made Brennan promise to stay good until she found a man worth keeping. No boys, no dating, and definitely no falling in love—those were the rules for college, and Brennan carved them into the brick walls guarding her heart…

But there’s a fire burning behind those walls, and when Brennan meets Owen Scott, the (mysterious) new guy across the hall, she can’t deny the pull between them. He is everything she should never want. Everyone warns her to stay away—even Owen himself—but the heart wants what the heart wants, even if it knows that it’s going to get hurt—even if it means throwing old promises to new flames…

I was intrigued with the blurbs when I saw This One's For You by Brandy Jellum, and decided to read it. I love the sound of Owen, the mysterious guy across the hall. Brennan was dealing with the loss of her best friend, Reagan. They made a promise for college—no boys, no dating and no falling in love. And Brennan intended to keep her promise until she met Owen Scott across the hall. 

I love how the story started. It was exciting to see how Brennan started college and how she was going to survive it with new friends, class and everything. The characters were fun. Owen was such a playboy. But he can be nice and quirky. I immediately fell in love with Brennan and her relationship with her brothers and her new roommate, Amelia. 

Brandy Jellum writing was easy to get into and it flows nicely. I enjoyed reading her style, but not so much with so many dramas between Brennan and Owen of the story. I wished Brennan talk a lot more about Reagan, since they are best friend. And I definitely wanted to see more of Brennan, Amelia and their friendship. Overall, This One's For You by Brandy Jellum is definitely an enjoyable read, if not for a few issues. But, I think, fans of the new adult's book would surely enjoy this.

I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher/CLP Blog Tour in exchange for my review.

Excerpt

My body started to shake as the first tears streamed down my cheeks. I slid down to the floor, pulling my knees to my chest, and rocked back and forth. As more tears fell, my sobs became louder. Everything I had been holding in until that moment burst free from the dam I had carefully built.

Every emotion: anger, sadness, guilt, desperation, fear, anxiety, remorse, and rage overcame me in that single second. Everything I was afraid to let myself feel, I was feeling all at once. My body shook violently as the tears continued to stream down my face, and my throat was hoarse from crying.

It happened—I finally broke.

For the first time in almost a year, I let myself feel something—really feel something. The tears I had shed in the past were nothing compared to the ones I was crying now. The pain was unbearable. I wanted it to all go away. I wanted to rewind the clock just a little bit. I’d rather deal with my brothers acting like fools than to feel this.

This was the moment everyone close to me was waiting for, the moment when I finally let everything sink in. They were waiting for me to break. I was surprised it wasn’t sooner.

My sobs echoed the breaking of my heart. Speaking for the things I couldn’t say—the one thing I wanted to shout loud enough for everyone to hear; it wasn’t fair! Why was the most beautiful person I’d ever known stripped from this earth before it was her time?

Seeing Ronnie, hearing his plan, brought everything to the surface. Why couldn’t he stay away? Everyone was constantly pushing me, and this time they pushed me too far. I went right over the cliff, and there was no end in sight.

I barely heard the soft knock against the bathroom door over the sound of my own sobs. I held my breath, waiting to see if it was just my imagination, when there was another rap against the wooden door.

I heard a loud sigh and a soft thump against the sturdy wood. My chest heaved as I kept as quiet as I could, my face soaked with tears. I wiped at them furiously, trying to get them to stop. The more I fought against it, the faster they seemed to fall.

My mouth was dry. I licked my lips, tasting the saltiness of my broken heart.

“Brennan . . .” Owen said.

“I’ll be out in a moment.”

I bit my bottom lip. I had to get myself together. I needed to get up off the floor, put a smile on my face, and go on like nothing happened. There was a reason why it had taken so long for me to break—I kept pretending I was fine. It wasn’t healthy, but staying on the cold bathroom floor bawling wasn’t either.

I had to go back to the way I was prior to this. I had to grin it and bear it. Like nothing in the world could get me down. It was the only way I was going to survive.

Author Bio

Brandy’s passion for writing began long before she actually sat down to write. As a child, she has had an obsession with reading, everything from the classic stories by Jane Austen to YA Fiction by Richelle Mead. Finally, in 2012, she decided to create her own stories for people to fall in love with. Brandy bounces back and forth writing both Romance and Young Adult Fiction (which is mainly just for fun). At the beginning of 2014, Brandy signed a contract with publishing company Booktrope. She is very excited about the next chapter of her life and cannot wait to share her books and passion with readers. When she isn’t writing, she can be found chasing after her husband, her four children and her black lab, Diesel. Or curled up on her favorite corner of the couch with her newest book.

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On Tour: If I Say No by Brandy Jellum - Excerpt + Giveaway

Brandy Jellum is now on tour with CLP Blog Tours with her book, If I Say No. Please visit her page for more blog stops.

If I Say No
by Brandy Jellum

Genre: Chick Lit, Women Fiction
Publication: December 2014
Connect: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Reid Harder thought his life was seemingly perfect. He had the woman he loved and nothing could go wrong. The only exception comes in the form of his brother—Rhett.

Set on revenge, his brother will stop at nothing to make Reid pay for his past mistakes. Teaming up with the FBI, Reid is determined to put an end to his brother once and for all. But sometimes, fate has other plans in store. His relationship with Liza is falling apart, enemies become friends, and family becomes his worst nightmare. With the future unknown, Reid must figure out a way to make amends with his past if he wants to move forward with his future.

Excerpt

“Reid…” Marco walks in looking like he’s spent the last couple of days rummaging through garbage. From the foul smell wafting off him, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s exactly where he’s been me. “I’ve found him. I’ve found Rhe— ”

“What is that smell?” I cut him off as quickly as possible. He hasn’t noticed my mother in the kitchen.

“Found who?” My mother chimes in. We all turn our attention to her who is studying us with a watchful eye. “Please don’t stop on my account.”

“Ellen!” Marco says with false charm. “I didn’t know we were expecting you…here. Tonight.”

“Why wouldn’t I be here?” she says, grinning. “Apparently, my son is getting married in two weeks. A better question would be what are you doing here?” Her nose wrinkles. “Like that?”

She walks around the bar and toward him. Marco is a big man who can kill without a moment’s hesitation, but this little lady makes him cower like a scared puppy. I watch in silent amusement as he takes a few steps back. His eyes plead with me, but he’s on his own here. I’m already on my mother’s bad side and I’m not going to do anything to dig myself into a deeper hole.

“I’m…I’m…” He shrugs and shrinks a little. “I’m here for the wedding. Just like you are.”

“That’s a load of crap if I ever heard one.” She raises her hand and swats his arm. “I know you’re only around when there is trouble brewing in my son’s life. So tell me what’s going on, or so help me God I’ll beat you to the floor and make you tell me. Don’t think for a second I’m afraid of all this macho muscle garbage you have going on.”

Marco looks over at me again, and I hold back the laughter threatening to escape. This man has seen enough terror to last him a lifetime. He’s been in countless battles—in the military and in his own personal life. He’s built like a monster truck. He has no fears. He can handle anything.

My mother has just crushed him with nothing but her attitude.

“Yes, ma’am,” he says quietly.

“And don’t think I don’t know that you’re laughing back there, Reid Emerson Harder,” she calls out without turning around. “You’re in as much trouble as he is.”

Marco steps closer to me, putting distance between himself and my mother.

“Now,” she says, and she holds up a lethal-looking spatula. “Which of you children wants to tell me what‘s really going on here?”

Author Bio:

Brandy’s passion for writing began long before she actually sat down to write. As a child, she has had an obsession with reading, everything from the classic stories by Jane Austen to YA Fiction by Richelle Mead. Finally, in 2012, she decided to create her own stories for people to fall in love with. Brandy bounces back and forth writing both Romance and Young Adult Fiction (which is mainly just for fun).

At the beginning of 2014, Brandy signed a contract with publishing company Booktrope. She is very excited about the next chapter of her life and cannot wait to share her books and passion with readers.

When she isn’t writing, she can be found chasing after her husband, her four children and her black lab, Diesel. Or curled up on her favorite corner of the couch with her newest book.

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