Blog Tour: Be With Me by J. Lynn

Rating: 4 stars

Pub Date: February 4, 2014

Publisher: William Morrow (Harper Collins)

Genre: new adult contemporary romance

Format/Source: DRC, from the publisher

Status: Book 2 of the Wait For You companion series
Links: Wait For You review (also 4 stars)

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review as part of the blog tour, which was organized & hosted by Mundie Moms Blog Tours. The full tour schedule can be found HERE. Please go give my fellow tour hosts some love!

Summary:

Teresa Hamilton is having a rough year—she’s in love with her big brother’s best friend, but he hasn’t spoken to her since they shared a truly amazing, mind-blowing, change-your-life kiss. She got out of a terrible relationship. And now an injury is threatening to end her dance career for good. It’s time for Plan B – college. And maybe a chance to convince Jase that what they have together is real.

Jase Winstead has a huge secret that he’s not telling anyone. Especially not his best friend’s incredibly beautiful sister. Even though he and Teresa shared the hottest kiss of his life, he knows that his responsibilities must take priority. He certainly doesn’t have time for a relationship. But it doesn’t help that all he can think about kissing the one girl who could ruin everything for him.

As they’re thrown together more and more, Jase and Tess can’t keep denying their feelings for each other. But a familiar danger looms and tragedy strikes. As the campus recovers, the star-crossed couple must decide what they’re willing to risk to be together, and what they’re willing to lose if they’re not…

Review:

I am a relative newcomer to Team JLA/J. Lynn. If there is one author whose books are recommended to me more than any other, it's Jennifer, but for the longest time, I didn't heed the suggestions by so many of you die-hard JLA fans. The first novel I ever read of hers was Frigid, in October, at the recommendation of a couple trusted author friends. I am so glad I finally listened to them. With each book, I fall farther into the trap she has created with relatable characters, realistic plots, and swoony romance.

Be With Me picks up a short while after Wait For You. Teresa, Cam's little sister, is at school with the group after her surgery, but she's not happy about it. She's also unsettled being close to Jase, with whom she shared a pretty steamy kiss (okay, I'm gonna be honest here. I really wanted a flashback of that dang kiss. Unfortunately, it never materialized, and I was a little disappointed about that) a couple years earlier. Teresa is a firecracker. She has all the grit and determination that any Hamilton would have (seriously, she and Cam are so similar, and I loved it!), but she's also a teenage girl with a big crush on her big brother's smexy best friend who has beens sending out some wildly opposing signals. There are times when Teresa is fiery and brazen and others when she's unsure and reserved. It's so cool to see a female character so perfectly embody these emotions without seeming fake or forced. Not only that, but to see her visibly push aside her fears and go for what she wants was absolutely delightful. Four candy canes cupcakes for you, Glen Coco Teresa. You go, Glen Coco girl!

And then there's Jase. Mmm. A fine male speciman if ever there was one. I found myself wishing multiple times that there was some Jase pov just so I could get in his head a little bit, but dang. If that happened, we might have missed out on Teresa's descriptions of his delicious manly bod, and that would be tragic. Let's go down the list, shall we? 1. Jase is absurdly sexy. Avery mentions in Wait For You that Cam is a sexual guy. That is true, and I love me some Cam. But Jase...well, he cranks it up to eleven. The boy is fine. 2. He has some serious baggage which leads to serious committment issues. I want to reach into the pages to save him from himself. 3. Cute boy being adorable with a child alert. As much as I love Teresa with Jase, my favorite relationship in Be With Me might be Jase and Jack. Because REASONS. 4. Cute boy being adorable with horses alert. 5. Jase is under no sparkle effect that makes him think he's perfect. He knows when he's made a mistake. He also does his best to make up for those mistakes. Honestly, he's a bit of a masochist because he punishes himself for his mistakes past the point of making sense, which is heartbreaking, but I really like that he isn't just a stupid guy. He's very perceptive. 6. He's got a hero complex. Little bit. 7. He's sexy. I'm sorry. Needed to be said again. In case you forgot.

The greatest thing about Jennifer's romances is that here she creates these amazing characters, but she doesn't just let them exist in a plotless porno. There's actual substance here. If you've read Wait For You, you know very well what Teresa's baggage is, at least. She's still reeling from her former abusive boyfriend and the major guilt she feels from Cam's legal troubles when he beat up said former bf. The absolute most delightful surprise, though, is that Jase's baggage is pretty evident early on, and I expected Jennifer to let it stew similar to Avery's. I thought it would drag out for a while. I was pleasantly surprised when it comes out early. Loved that. Much of the conflict is of the internal relationship sort, just between Tess and Jase, as they attempt to be together, but there was an external plot that was handled sensitively if not exactly subtly enough for my absolute liking. But again, the focus is on the relationship, not so much on the outside world, and I'm okay with that.

Be With Me is just a really entertaining book. It's solid all the way around. It was a fast read in the good way that you should read a book fast if you're into it. It's filled with beautiful scenes ranging from the silly to the witty, from the tender to the steamy (Seriously. Very steamy). The romance is so well created. A girl and a boy with serious attraction and lots of things against them (age, a muscle-y big brother/best friend in the way, baggage) grow up, become friends, and then spend their time alternately fighting or embracing their evolving relationship. I absolutely freaking love that Jennifer places such an emphasis on the importance of friendship within romance in this series. It makes me wish for that sort of relationship in my own life. Cupcakes included.

Jennifer shared this teaser on her blog a few weeks ago. I have to say, it's one of my favorite scenes in the entire book! All I can say is that this romp in the hay is highly excellent! If you want to read it in its entirety...go buy the book! It's out TODAY! If you're still not sold, what's wrong with you?! you can check out the Be With Me trailer here.

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About the Author:

# 1 New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV.

She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

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