Blog Tour Review and Giveaway: City of Champions by Chloe T. Barlow @chloetbarlow

Blog Tour Review and Giveaway: City of Champions by Chloe T. Barlow @chloetbarlowCity of Champions by Chloe T. Barlow
on November 10, 2014
Buy on Amazon|B&N|Kobo
Add to Goodreads

How do you find the will to try, when you've spent all of your life playing on a field strewn with shattered lives and broken rules?

Tragedy and betrayal taught Jenna Sutherland early on that her safest bet was to fiercely avoid any risk, whether it is in work, life, or love. Now a respected orthopedic surgical resident on the cusp of finally breaking through in her career, she’s more guarded than ever.

When injured NFL quarterback Wyatt McCoy bulldozes into her life there’s no denying he’s cocky, selfish, and downright dangerous — everything Jenna’s sworn she doesn’t want.

Suddenly the levelheaded doctor finds herself facing down her greatest fear, and she’s tempted to gamble all she’s fought so hard to build. The two embark on an intense holiday love affair that quickly teeters on obsession, and tempts them both to think they could go all-in on a real future together. Yet Wyatt's desperation to stay on the field — and out of the operating room — lures him to take dangerous risks with Jenna's trust.

Will they win at love or lose everything­ — including their fragile chance at happiness?


excerpt

“Look at me, Jenna,” he ordered.

The foreign sound of her given name on his lips jarred her back to the moment and she opened her eyes in a flustered frenzy, her heart pounding erratically inside of her.

“I don’t want you to hide from me anymore, Jenna. No more excuses, because I’ve heard all of yours and I don’t buy any of them. I want you to open up that margin of error for me. Do you understand me?”

Wyatt’s voice was thick, his hot breath tickling her face with each of his words, causing her core to spasm violently. Jenna was becoming wet between her tensing thighs with each of his delicious commands. She tried to stand up straight and collect herself, but she couldn’t move her legs.

Her mouth parted but no words came out — the insistent touching and rubbing of his fingers through her hair and against her scalp was too distracting, the flashing of his eyes on hers too hypnotic. All she could do was nod her head again as she looked wordlessly at his face. He was all hard lines and desire and all she wanted was to feel more of him.

What would it be like to taste him? To bring that scent and his breath inside her body — would it overwhelm everything inside her and leave nothing else behind but him?

Hesitantly, Jenna lifted her hands and rested them on his waist — so lightly that her fingertips barely toughed the leather of his belt. That was all the encouragement he needed, because he immediately descended onto her mouth.

His lips were so soft against hers, but his kiss was hot and demanding. It was the most powerful combination of gentle and hard that she’d ever experienced.

Jenna slid her hands up his sides, underneath his jacket, and rubbed them against the hard ridges of his back until he groaned into her mouth. She slipped her tongue deeply into his mouth, as he pressed his full body against her. The metal of her car door dug into her back and the handle pressed uncomfortably against her butt, yet she couldn’t be bothered to care.

In this moment, all she wanted in the world was more of him, every part of him. She bit down on his bottom lip, then licked against it with her tongue and he responded with nibbles and licks of his own. He slid his hands down her body, grasping her bottom in his large hands and pulling her roughly against him.

She could tell he was hard through his jeans and it made her feel like a ravenous lioness, desperate for food after seemingly unending deprivation. She wanted to sate that hunger — eager to tear him apart with her teeth, if only to taste him that much more completely.

See Playlist

  • Time to Say Goodbye – Con Te Partiro — Sarah Brightman
  • My Silver Lining — First Aid Kit
  • Luckiest Man — The Wood Brothers
  • Somebody That I Used To Know — Gotye
  • Casino (Bad Things) — Houndmouth
  • Drive — The Cars
  • Wintersong — Sarah McLachlan
  • Secret Garden — Bruce Springsteen
  • Estare En Mi Casa Esta Navidad — Luis Miguel
  • 10,000 Weight In Gold — The Head and The Heart
  • Stay With Me — Sam Smith
  • What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve? — Harry Connick Jr.
  • Auld Lang Syne — John McDermott
  • Dice — Finley Quaye, Beth Orton
  • Ticking Bomb — Aloe Blacc
  • The One That Got Away — The Civil Wars
  • Don’t Give Up — Peter Gabriel
  • Say Something — A Great Big World
  • High Hopes — Kodaline
  • Codeine — Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
  • I Wish I Was the Moon — Neko Case
  • With Or Without You — U2
  • Ledges — Noah Gunderson
  • Welcome Home, Son — Radical Face
  • Lost Cause — Beck
  • Ends of the Earth — Lord Huron
  • All of Me — John Legend

 

review

Let’s start with Wyatt, shall we. I really liked him, even in the moments I really shouldn’t have. He had me wrapped around his finger from the beginning and I was rooting for him the entire time.

Now onto Jenna. What she went through in the beginning of the book absolutely wrecked me. With that said, I loved the woman she became, even the guarded side of her. She showed real strength in what she’d overcome.

Overall: The only thing I didn’t care for was the way it was written. I’m not a huge fan of third person writing. Sometimes it can be confusing as to who is talking and I found myself having to re-read parts. I also didn’t care for the inner monologue from the characters. The characters chemistry and friendships were great. The plot was original and not like anything I’d read before. I love series that include the previous characters in the next installment, while telling a completely new story. The story was heart wrenching, an emotional roller coaster and very deep. I would find myself tearing up one moment, and the next I was laughing. I really liked the women together.

 
jen

About Chloe T. Barlow

Chloe is a contemporary romance novelist living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her husband and their sweet dog. She is a native Washingtonian that graduated Duke University with a degree in English and Chinese language. She met her husband at Duke and he brought her to Pittsburgh over a decade ago, which she has loved ever since and made her adopted hometown. She also attended the University of Pittsburgh Law School where she continued to be a book-loving nerd.

Chloe has always loved writing and cherishes the opportunity to craft her fictional novels and share them with the world. When Chloe isn’t writing, she spends her time exploring Pittsburgh with her husband and friends. She also enjoys yoga, jogging, and all Pittsburgh sports, as well as her Duke Blue Devils.

She also thoroughly enjoys every opportunity to communicate with her readers. Since the release of her debut novel, Three Rivers, she has enjoyed the honor of meeting and talking with numerous fans, and looks forward to getting to know many more.


giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About Chloe T. Barlow

Chloe is a contemporary romance novelist living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her husband and their sweet dog. She is a native Washingtonian that graduated Duke University with a degree in English and Chinese language. She met her husband at Duke and he brought her to Pittsburgh over a decade ago, which she has loved ever since and made her adopted hometown. She also attended the University of Pittsburgh Law School where she continued to be a book-loving nerd.

Chloe has always loved writing and cherishes the opportunity to craft her fictional novels and share them with the world. When Chloe isn’t writing, she spends her time exploring Pittsburgh with her husband and friends. She also enjoys yoga, jogging, and all Pittsburgh sports, as well as her Duke Blue Devils.

She also thoroughly enjoys every opportunity to communicate with her readers. Since the release of her debut novel, Three Rivers, she has enjoyed the honor of meeting and talking with numerous fans, and looks forward to getting to know many more.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.