Thursday, July 30, 2015

30 Days by Christine d'Abo - Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway


Enter to Win A Trade Print Copy of 30 DAYS



30 DAYS
Christine d'Abo
Releasing July 28th, 2015
Kensington 



For years, Alyssa has been going to bed with a memory. Is she ready to wake up with a fantasy?

Some people wait their whole lives to find their soul mate, but not Alyssa Barrow. She met Rob at sixteen, and they were set to live happily ever after—until he became ill. In his final days, Rob urged his beautiful, young wife not to abandon happiness—or pleasure. He even left her a special gift, a sexy game plan to help her move on: Thirty cards with instructions for thirty days of passion. You’ll know when the time is right, he’d said. Now it’s two years later, and when Alyssa meets her hot new neighbor, Harrison Kemp, she begins to think the right time is right now…

From his sculpted thighs to his devilish grin, Harrison is the kind of man women want. Before she can lose her nerve, Alyssa tells Harrison about her long-ignored cards…and asks him to help her fulfill them. It’s a favor he’s more than happy to, um, perform. With his skillful touch, and the hot press of his lips against her skin, Alyssa finds herself re-awakening to life—and a host of other sensations. But what began as not-so-innocent fun soon grows into true intimacy, and Alyssa realizes she’s opening herself up not just to sex…but to love. When it comes to a future with Harrison, what’s really in the cards?

Saucy, heartwarming, and insightful, 30 Days explores the agony—and the ecstasy—of starting over, and how a little encouragement, and a little courage, can go a long way…





I huffed, then licked my lips before I finally slipped my finger beneath the edge and tore the paper open.

Hidden inside was a single piece of paper wrapped around a bundle of index cards. I ignored the cards for the time being and spread open the paper. I took a moment before I could read the note. This was something new from Rob and my heart broke a little bit more. Those invisible fingers squeezed at my chest.

Alyssa.

I love you. I know you love me. I’m glad you’re ready to move on and start having some fun once again. I also know you well enough to realize you’ll only go so far before you stop. Don’t do that. And for God’s sake, don’t get into a serious relationship right away either. I always thought you hadn’t taken enough time to figure out who you were as a person before we hooked up. We jumped into being a couple and lucky for us we worked and it was awesome.

You always said you never regretted being with me so young, but you also didn’t date anyone else. You didn’t sleep with anyone else. I took that experience from you and I always hated that you didn’t get to explore. I wanted to give you my permission to go out there and experiment. Have fun. Fool around and don’t feel the least bit guilty about it.

I thought I might also offer you some suggestions on how to get started.

Humor me, okay.

I’ve had a lot of time on my hands recently. When you weren’t here, I started this little project. I call it Alyssa’s 30 Days of Sex. Please don’t have sex thirty days in a row because I’ll be jealous. Not really. If you can do that, go for it. Seriously though, jealous.

Anyway, even if you don’t use any of these cards, I had a lot of fun imagining you enacting them. You’ll read them and think OMG boy dreams! That’s cool. They are. Change them up if you want.

Even when you weren’t with me, you made me happy. I’m going to stop now before I get sappy. Go get laid and enjoy the kinky sex.

Love you, baby.
Rob

I laughed. It was such a Rob thing to have done. I had no difficulty picturing him coming up with ideas for his cards while going through his chemo. Come to think of it, that explained most of the Internet pop-ups I’d been forced to clean off his laptop after he passed.

Sex cards. He wrote me freaking sex cards. I fell in love with him all over again. My best friend and lover was giving me advice on how to hook up with other people from beyond the grave. The idea was a mix of weird and sweet, the perfect descriptor for him.


I loved this book! Harrison and Alyssa have really great chemistry, and the scenes where they are following the cards are HOT! It is also an emotional read since she is trying to move on after losing her husband. The cards add playfulness and humor to their relationship. I only wish we had Harrison's POV as well as more personal information about him.

I received an ARC via NetGalley for the purpose of an honest review. I was not compensated for this review, all conclusions are my own.




Christine d’Abo is a romance novelist and short story writer, with over thirty publications to her name. She loves to exercise and stops writing just long enough to keep her body in motion too. When she’s not pretending to be a ninja in her basement, she’s most likely spending time with her husband, daughters, and her two dogs.






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