Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway: Romancing the Bookworm by Kate Evangelista

I'm happy to be a part of this blog tour, given that Kate Evangelista is one of my most favorite authors in the history of history. From YA, she is now jumping to New Adult and I'm just so eager to find out how well she would write in NA. The verdict: I'm not disappointed.

Book Description:

Sometimes, even the best-laid plans can unravel.

It's spring break, and Tamara Winters would rather stay on campus and read romance novels than flaunt her size-fourteen body on a beach. But her best friend, Ronni, has other ideas. Against her wishes, Tamara is whisked away to picturesque Maverick Bay, where she's wrangled into waiting tables with Rony at the Shore Shack for its busy week leading to Maverick's Surf Invitational. There she meets fellow schoolmate Xavier Solomon, the Invitational's organizer and campus womanizer by reputation. From the moment Tamara sees him emerging from the waves like a hero in of one of her romance novels, all she wants to do is run away from the feelings he inspires in her.

Little does she know Xavier has been watching her for weeks now. In fact, after failed attempts at asking her out on campus, he's concocted a crazy plan: fabricating romantic situations straight out of her favorite books. Xavier quickly realizes that if Tamara gets a whiff of his designs, he might as well spell CREEPER across his forehead. Yet as they grow closer, he's convinced it's a risk worth taking. What he hasn't planned on, of course, is his drug-addicted, alcoholic stepbrother, who decides to join the fun and put a wrench in Xavier’s scheme.

Spring break is proving hotter than Tamara expected. Will her romance novels be able to compete?

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My Thoughts:

There is just a kind of magic in Kate's writing that always pulls me in. I found Romancing the Bookworm so effortless to read, superfluous in the sense that I could not stop reading it the moment I started.

Tamara Winters would rather read indoors for an entire week than go out partying. But Kidnapped for spring break by her best friend, Ronni, Tamara has no choice but to stay in Maverick Bay and help out at the Shore Shack - if not Ronni was bound to throw her novels into the ocean. Then she met the finest specimen of the opposite sex, Xavier Solomon. She learned that reality can beat fiction, in certain cases.

In Romancing the Bookworm, the narrative was split to two points of view: Tamara's and Xavier's. Let's start off with Tamara. As a bookworm, the way she thinks and relates fiction to reality and vice versa stirred a sense of familiarity in me, given that I myself am a bookworm. What I liked about her was that she really delved into detailed comparison and spoke with so much passion. Her voice had a sincere and genuine tone to it and for this reason, it was easy to relate to her, as if she was an old friend. Tamara narrated the story from her point of view in a descriptive, hilarious yet contemplative manner.

Xavier on the other hand, was what I would call the perfect dream guy. A tall, tanned, gorgeous Adonis, from whichever angle you looked at him, you would find him appealing. But his life was not 100% perfect as it should have been. He had a lot on his plate, stress over planning the Invitational, almost-aneurism over his brother, Zander, and a bit of anxiety and hesitation over Tamara. As the story progressed, I got to know more and more about his life. Piece by piece, he was unraveled. Each peeled off layer made him all the more east to understand and all the more easy to relate to.

The relationship of Xavier and Tamara was not exactly instalove, more of a supernova of physical attraction at first that was both interrupted and hastened by embarrassing circumstances. The undeniable gravity-like pull was present, tugging the lovers towards one another, but that didn't stop them from contemplating about how they were strangers 24 hours ago. There was still logic amidst the chemistry-fired interactions. Romance readers will definitely enjoy this one as the scenes varied from sweet and teasing to hot and steamy.

Overall, Romancing the Bookworm is as diverse as the genres that Tamara reads: fun, romantic and steamy. With a cast of developed characters, a enchanting setting and beautiful writing, I really enjoyed this New Adult Contemporary. I strongly recommend this for older YA contemporary readers and romance readers.

4.5 Cupids = Obsessive book love.
Almost made it as one of my favorites! I strongly recommend this!

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