Something I Need by Lena Lowe
Publication Date: September 14, 2016
Sometimes a book comes along, grabs you, makes you continue reading, and all the while you’re thinking: well, this can’t continue. This book can’t continue to be this awesome. The author is going to drop the proverbial ball and the book will ultimately just be really average. Something I Need by debut author Lena Lowe never drops the ball!
Jonte Williamson has come to Nashville, TN from Australia to pursue her dream of being a country music star. But the first day upon arriving, it seems like everything is going to hell in a handbasket. The room in the apartment she was supposed to have has been snatched up and she’s tired and homeless.
Cash, the owner of the bar, Rock on Nashville, sees Jonte and decides that she is drama. He likes to avoid drama, but there’s something about her puppy-dog eyes that makes him say things that he would never say if he were rational. Like: Want a beer? Want some food? Stay with my sister?
I liked this book from the get-go. Lena Lowe’s writing style is refreshing. Cash and Jonte are both interesting, developed characters. Cash has a vulnerable flaw that has made him keep most people, especially women, at bay, until he meets Jonte. And, Jonte is a welcome change from the typical heroines who lack self-esteem. When the relationship hits a snag, she doesn’t moan and cry and beg, even though she is hurting. She goes on with her life. That is so worth a fist pump! While I realize that some readers won’t like that because they love the angst and drama, I applaud it. It’s just so much in the “life is too short to cry over spilled milk” vein. Clean it up and move on!
The book is also a lot of fun. I can’t tell you how many times I caught myself smiling while reading. To me that is the mark of success for a romance. Make it charming. Make it fresh. Make it sexy….oh, yes, this book is sexy. When Cash and Jonte get together, feisty and wisecracking, the sensuality roars.
The secondary characters, Dolly, Cash’s twin sister; Tanner, Cash’s best friend since they were young; Dean, Jonte’s piano-playing new colleague; and Seb, Jonte’s drum-playing new colleague and brief boyfriend, are all great and definitely advance the story. There’s a great scene with Jonte, Dolly, Dean, and Seb derived from the True American drinking game played on New Girl that is a hoot.
And, of course, if you’ve been reading my reviews, you know that one of the biggest draws for me is if a book is at all music-related. Yes! Jonte sings and plays the piano and learns how to play the guitar. There is music and auditions and fun.
Fortunately for us, Something I Need is part of Lena Lowe’s new series xoxo Nashville. The next story belongs to Dolly and Tanner. The third belongs to Dean (YEA!!!!!) which makes me very happy because by the end of Something I Need, I was adoring Dean. I am looking forward to reading more of Lena Lowe’s work and I sincerely hope she keeps it as stimulating and varied as Something I Need.
From Amazon: Something I Need, such a deal at $0.99 on kindle for the rest of September!
I received an ARC from Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
rating: 
(5 out of 5 butterflies)
Something I Need
Lena Lowe
(xoxo Nashville, #1)
Publication date: September 14th 2016
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Jonte Williamson has a dream: become Nashville’s next big star. Finding herself unexpectedly homeless hot off the plane wasn’t part of her grand plan.
Cash Bellini is a simple man: he loves his twin sister, Dolly, hates country music, and stays far away from anything more complicated than that.
When Jonte stumbles into Cash’s bar, helping out the homeless country music wannabe is the last thing on his agenda. Pity someone forgot to send the memo to his too-big heart and meddling twin. Throw in a pair of baby blue cowboy boots, a pool table and a splash of tequila, and these two are set to ignite in a hot sexy mess! Will either of their hearts survive the tug-o-war between what they want and what they need?
Blog Tour!
September 19th
–Alina Melinda’s Reads >> Excerpt
–Obsessed Bookworm´s World >> Review
–shannonbookishlife >> Review
September 20th
–Liz Gavin’s Blog >>Review
–Fiction Dreams >> Excerpt
–Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princess >> Review
September 21st
–Badass Bloggettes >> Top 10 List
–underneath the covers >> Excerpt
–Written Love Reviews >> Excerpt
September 22nd
–Archaeolibrarian – I Dig Good Books! >> Excerpt
–Book Addict >> Excerpt
–Jesus Freak Reader >> Review
September 23rd
–All in One Place >> Review
–The Starred Review >> Review
–More Books Than Livros >> Review
September 26th
–Books,Dreams,Life >> Review
–Evermore Books >> Interview
–Smada’s Book Smack >> Review
September 27th
–Crazy Beautiful Reviews >> Playlist
–Princess Reads >> Review
–Sascha Darlington’s Microcosm Explored >> Review
September 28th
–blogs and coffee >> Guest post
–iScream Books >> Review
–The Crafty Engineer’s Bookshelf >> Review
September 29th
–Never Too Many To Read >> Review
–Mello & June, It’s a Book Thang! >> Top 10 List
–Romantic Fanatic >> Review
September 30th
–Books 2 Blog >> Review
–The Silver Dagger Scriptorium >> Guest post
–The Phantom Paragrapher >> Review
Author Bio:
Lena lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three daughters. She completed a MA in Writing in 2013 and has been working on a New Adult series based in Nashville. The first book in the series, Something I Need, was a 2014 RWA Contemporary Romance Stiletto finalist in the New Adult category.
In early 2015, Lena and her family spent 5 weeks road tripping across the US. It was an amazing once in a lifetime family holiday and research for her debut series all rolled into one!
Lena is an avid reader, especially in the New Adult genre. She is a mad Colleen Hoover, Samantha Young and KA Tucker fan, and is more than a little bit in love with Becca and Krista Richie’s Addicted series, Jay Crownover’s Marked Men series and Kylie Scott’s Stage Dive series.
GIVEAWAY!
2 x $10 Amazon Giftcards!!!
This sounds like a fun read and very well written, too! Glad you liked it! 🙂
Loved it and look forward to more in the series! Excellent new talent!