Check out my review and two teasers here: http://frommetoyouvideophoto.blogspot.com/2012/08/made-grade-paradise-diaries-se... ( )

Full review to come as part of the blog tour.

*My sincere thanks to Kismet Book Tours and Courtney Cole for providing a review copy of Dante's Girl*


Book Synopsis: I have spent every summer since I was ten years old with my father in London. Every summer, since I was ten years old, has been uneventful and boring.
Until this year.

And this year, after a freak volcanic eruption strands me far from home, I have learned these things:

1. I can make do with one outfit for three days before I buy new clothes.
2. If I hear the phrase, “You’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto,” even one more time, I might become a homicidal maniac.
3. I am horribly and embarrassingly allergic to jellyfish.
4. I am in love with Dante Giliberti, who just happens to be the beautiful, sophisticated son of the Prime Minister of a Mediterranean paradise.
5. See number four above. Because it brings with it a whole slew of problems and I’ve learned something from every one of them.

Let’s start with the fact that Dante’s world is five light-years away from mine. He goes to black-tie functions and knows the Prime Minister of England on a first name basis. I was born and raised on a farm in Kansas and wear cut-off jeans paired with cowboy boots. See the difference?

But hearts don’t care about differences. Hearts want what they want. And mine just wants to be Dante’s girl.

My heart just might be crazy.

Somehow, books come along right exactly when I need them. I was desperately wanting something light, but that would be satisfying. This sounded like it would be just the thing, and it was. Perfectly light and beautifully satisfying. I was certain that I'd enjoy it, but what surprised me was just how much I did.

I found Reece to be captivating and engaging. I liked her Midwestern charm and her down-to-earth personality. I liked that she tried to play it cool with everything, but totally had an inner fangirl going on most of the time. That is SO me.

I liked that she had to put some effort into things. Nothing was just handed to her. Okay, so maybe a plane ride with Mr. Hotness was a gift from Heaven, but the rest wasn't. She actually had to DO things. Also, she wasn't 'the plain girl who never had any friends and all of a sudden is the most beloved person on the entire planet and maybe Mars too'. I can't even tell you how much I liked that bit. She had her friends, she had her enemies, and she had pretty much everyone in-between. That is so much more like real life and since this is a contemp, I feel perfectly justified in expecting bits of reality to creep through far more often than in fantasy.

Dante makes me completely firm in my resolve that I need a foreign boyfriend. I'm telling you, the foreign guys pretty much have an unbreakable lead in how to treat the ladies. (also, for the record, I speak of this through personal experience and not just books) Dante was awesome. If I'd done my book boyfriend post from earlier after I'd finished this book, I'd have included him on it. He's totally there in spirit.

I really liked the story and absolutely ADORED the setting. An island paradise in the Mediterranean? Yes, please. I felt like I was walking the same perfect beaches as Reece and Dante. I seriously could SMELL the ocean breeze! As for the story, it was perfectly paced and beautifully written. It was the perfect combination of light and serious - just exactly what this reader wanted in a story right then.

I'd totally pick this one up again and I'm planning on picking up the finished book when my budget increases. It gets 4 Eiffel Towers! ( )

Dante's Girl has it all - drama, romance and amazing characters...

Reece is on her way to visit her father in England for the summer when she bumps into a tall dark and very handsome gent with, of course, the perfect smile and accent and knows that she will never see him again. That is until she discovers that he, Dante, is on her flight and they begin to chat before take-off... when a horrifying accident occurs and the airport begins to shut down, Dante is being taken away by men in dark suits and he asks Reece to go with him. Against her better judgement, but following her gut-instinct, she goes with Dante, not knowing at the time, that she will be off on the biggest adventure of her life: Dante is the Prime Minister of Caberra, Greece, son.

I adored Reece and her all-american ways, her sarcasm and wit. She was realistic with every situation that came her way and was quick to step-up when she needed to. But lets not forget, Reece is also a teen who thinks Dante is beautiful, and is swooning over him big time - add a little jealousy, insecurity and a few hysterics, and we have one very well rounded, likable and relatable girl.
And just like Reece, I instantly got caught up with the beauty of the island, the prime minister's castle and of course, Dante.
Dante is handsome and charming and so smitten with the lovely Reece, we can definitely see why Reece is so alluring to him - Reece is like no other person he has met before. It is so refreshing for him to be around someone who doesn't know exactly who he is, what he stands for, who he is suppose to be... Reece is someone that he can let his guard down and just be himself. He doesn't have to worry about her judging him or having any high expectations from him. But at the same time, Reece is making things difficult for him too. He is torn between doing what he thinks his father wants him to do and what he really wants to do.

Can Dante be who he really wants to be without disappointing his father? His country?
Can Reece let go of her fears and believe in the fairy-tale that she's been living in?
Is it possible that a farm-girl and a (kinda) prince be together???

There were other aspects to the story that I felt were drowned out by the romance. While other parts where so obvious. And the ending was quite predictable. It still made for a fun fast paced and light-hearted read that I know I would enjoy reading again.

I will definitely be keeping my eye on Courtney Cole
and her next novels in The Paradise Diaries Series, Mia's Heart
and the third one that is yet to be titled but will be released in 2013! ( )

Sweet Baby Monkeys

Dante’s Girl is the debuting novel for The Paradise Diaries series.This was such a sweet read. Reece is just your average everyday girl. Raise in Kansas on her Grandparents farm she nothing extraordinary. Although, this summer is going to be far from normal. This is not evident right away when she runs into a very attractive young man at the airport on her way to London, but when whisked away with him as per his evacuation protocol things begin to become quite evident. Dante is far from your typical everyday boy. The son of a prime minster he is anything from typical, and as the two spend more time together they appear to have something far from ordinary themselves. This was not a stop your heart romance, but it was a very sweet and heart melting romance. Dante has been forced into a life that does not leave many choices. While Reece is an American with every opportunity and choice at her finger tips. What these two characters learn from one another will open an eternity that never seemed possible. I really enjoyed this short and sweet love story. Unfortunately, I must comment about a couple frustrations with this story. As I said before Reece is a ordinary young girl, and with that I found myself irritated with the whiny girl syndrome that appears late into the story. I am not your typical girl girl, so that was something that I had to make myself over look. Overall, this was a right start, and I look forward to following the series as it comes.
~BookWhisperer Reviewer Jo~ ( )

Dante’s Girl by Courtney Cole
ARC received from Lakehouse Press via Netgalley
AVAILABLE NOW
Reviewed by: Middle Sis Jenn
The Sisters Say: Deliriously delicious—I devoured it!

I have recently been on a contemporary kick, which is strange for me because there was a time I didn’t like contemporaries. Now? I can’t get enough of them, so when I saw Dante’s Girl on Netgalley, I jumped at the chance to read and review it. And what a great choice it was!

Dante’s Girl is the perfect summer read, or the perfect weekend read, or the perfect whenever read! It’s charming, fun, and captivating—and the sweet romance will leave you with a smile. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick and fun read that will leave you wanting more.

This book started out with a bang—quite literally, a plane crash followed by a volcanic eruption. Talk about putting a damper on travel plans. But, those disasters spurred the perfect getaway for Reece, who is swept away by the delectable Dante, son of the Prime Minister of the perfect little island off the coast of Greece. It’s the perfect setting for a whirlwind romance to sweep you off your feet. I never got bored with this book. There are so many books today that just go on and on and on with the details, and truthfully, I don’t care about the whether the grass was lime green or green-green. It’s grass! But Courtney Cole doesn’t make those mistakes. Her book is the perfect mix of up time and down time—romance and intrigue, humor and tears.

And what about the characters?

I really liked Reece. At times she was a bit whiney and got on my nerves, but I liked that she didn’t let things stand in her way. Once she realized what a baby she was being, she would stand up, brush herself off, and get back to her life. I also really liked that she was not all, “He loves me, He loves me not,” because, let’s face it, unless you’re Ariel, that game won’t work. She was down to earth and I enjoyed watching her in this new situation.

And Dante…swoon worthy! His life is “complicated” which sucks, but still, there is hope for him yet. He’s caught between what he wants and what his dad wants, and its heartening to see him struggle with his future. But more importantly, he’s sauve and sophisticated and oh so sexy! I could just see the corners of his mouth turning up and his eyes twinkling as he looked at Reece. And I liked that he wasn’t this innocent guy—there was a sexual tension to him that made him even more attractive.

The only part I had a problem with was the “bad guy.” I felt like his character didn’t have enough dimension to him and he needed to be explored more thoroughly.

Overall, this was a great contemporary romance. I never found myself rushing through a dull moment, and I was constantly smiling at the relationship dynamics in the book. The minor characters were fun, too!

Content Warning: There is a “fade to black” sex scene which is also mentioned later in the book. There is also teenage alcohol consumption because, well, it’s Europe. ( )