Published by Penguin Berkley on May 25, 2012
Genres: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Format: Paperback
Pages: 321
Source: BookMooch
Goodreads: ★★★ 1/2
When Jacqueline follows her longtime boyfriend to the college of his choice, the last thing she expects is a breakup two months into sophomore year. After two weeks in shock, she wakes up to her new reality: she’s single, attending a state university instead of a music conservatory, ignored by her former circle of friends, and failing a class for the first time in her life.
Leaving a party alone, Jacqueline is assaulted by her ex’s frat brother. Rescued by a stranger who seems to be in the right place at the right time, she wants nothing more than to forget the attack and that night – but her savior, Lucas, sits on the back row of her econ class, sketching in a notebook and staring at her. Her friends nominate him to be the perfect rebound.
When her attacker turns stalker, Jacqueline has a choice: crumple in defeat or learn to fight back. Lucas remains protective, but he’s hiding secrets of his own. Suddenly appearances are everything, and knowing who to trust is anything but easy.
REVIEW
I’ve been interested in reading the New Adult genre for a while now, and I decided to begin with Easy by Tammara Webber after hearing so many good things about it. Easy follows college sophomore Jacqueline and begins with her getting assaulted while leaving a fraternity party. She is luckily saved by a mysterious guy named Lucas, who somehow knows her name. The book follows Jacqueline as she recovers from her assault, and as she learns more about who Lucas is.
Overall, I really liked Easy, and I think it was a good first step into New Adult. This is a genre between Young Adult and Adult, and includes more adult themes and some steamier romances. However, I really like that the romances aren’t too detailed or explicit. I also enjoyed Webber’s writing style, as it is well done and not cliché like some of the adult romances I’ve tried in the past.
In addition, I really liked the characters. Jacqueline is very likable and relateable, and Lucas is well-developed as well. The side characters in the book are also well written and add a lot to the story. I appreciated that Jacqueline had a strong best friend in her roommate Erin, a good role model in professor Dr. Heller, and a new buddy in classmate Benji. Webber knows how to write characters with great personalities for sure.
That being said, there were some things I didn’t enjoy about Easy. First and foremost, it was quite predictable at the beginning. While there is a bigger reveal at the end that I didn’t see coming, I did have a larger plot twist figured out from the start. Another writing issue is the setting. Webber does a great job embodying the college atmosphere, but there is no mention in the novel where Jacqueline’s college is situated in the country. There is a hint that this is a southern campus, but having a more specified geographic location would have helped me as a reader tremendously, as I kept wondering about the setting while reading.
My biggest critique with Easy, however, lies with the romance. While I won’t go into too much detail because of spoilers, I will say that at times I felt very uncomfortable with how Jacqueline and her love interest were interacting. Despite knowing that Jacqueline just got out of a three-year relationship with her ex-boyfriend and that she is recovering from a sexual assault, he pursues her full force and even ‘tricks’ her into his apartment. I would have liked for Webber to be a bit more attentive to the realities of Jacqueline’s situation when writing the romance.
All in all, I did really enjoy Easy, and I have already picked up the two other books in the series so I can continue on with the story. I’m glad I finally gave New Adult a chance, and will definitely be exploring other books in the genre as well. If you have any New Adult recommendations, please share them with me in the comments!
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Covergirl mascara is always hit or miss for me, so I was a little nervous to try this one. I received the shade Very Black, which is what I wear regularly. The Plumpify blast PRO is designed to give extreme plump and life with a 50x volume claim. I like that there is an actual before and after photograph right on the box!
The formula for me is a bit on the heavy side. This is definitely a wet mascara, and I much prefer dry formulas. Nonetheless, I do get great volume with the Plumpify. My lashes did clump a bit because of the heavy formula, but I am liking the look. I also love that this mascara is hypoallergenic and removes with soap and water. Any time a mascara comes off with a makeup remover wipe I know it’s a good one!
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
The Full Exposure Travel Palette is a very compact palette. It comes in sleek black packaging that is about the size of a credit card, just a bit thicker. There are eight shadows inside this palette, and a good size mirror. Four of the shadows are shimmers, and four are mattes. I love that you can do so many different eyeshadow looks with just this one palette!
Here are swatches of the four shimmer shades, from left to right: Chocolate Brown, Soft Gold, Light Tan, and Mid-Tone Slate. I’m not loving the formulas on these shimmer shadows, except for Light Tan which is beautiful. I find the others to be a bit on the chalky side, but I’m hoping once I get below the surface of the shadow they will be more blendable. I’m not too mad about this, though, because I am a huge fan of matte shadows!
Here are the matte shades, from left to right: Matte Warm Chocolate Brown, Soft Matte Mid-Tone Tan, Creamy Matte Beige, and Ashy Dark Brown. I am loving each of these shades! They are so pigmented and blend out really nicely. I recently did an eyeshadow look for the daytime using Creamy Matte Beige and Matte Warm Chocolate Brown and it came out really nice. I can’t wait to use these more!
Here is a look at my color coding for the star jar. I’ll put in a pink star every day that I work out, a purple star for every day that I take my doctor-recommended vitamins, and a yellow star for every pound I lose. I’m hoping to put in at least 100 pink stars and 200 purple stars by the time the year comes to a close. I’m not putting a goal on weight, just so I don’t dwell on it.
I purchased the BROWdrama in the shade 250 Blonde because I have dark blonde hair, and I find anything for brunettes is way too dark for me. The kit comes with a brow wax, brow powder, highlight powder, a double-sided angled brush, and a spoolie brush. I love that you get everything you need for a complete brow look. I would have liked a mini pair of tweezers in the kit, too. That is one benefit that the Milani kit has over this one. That being said, I am very impressed with the quality of this palette. 
Here are swatches of the wax, powder, and highlight. As you can see, the wax is only slightly pigmented. I’ve never used a brow wax before, and I have to say I’m surprised at how much I like it! I apply the wax first, and it does a great job at keeping my brows shaped. I no longer have to use a brow gel! Then I apply the powder, which is the perfect shade for my brows. I’m so glad I finally found a true match! Plus, the powder is great quality. I do not experience any fallout, but it also blends really well. Last but not least is the highlight. This is the one product in the palette I’m not thrilled about because it is a bit on the glittery side. However, it is decent quality and most days I do wear it. I also wanted to mention that I have been using the brushes included in the palette, and they do a great job.
Here is a quick look at what the SinfulShine bottles look like. They are the same as the regular SinfulColors nail polish, but the bottle caps are a chrome finish. Step 1 is on the left, and is the regular nail polish color called Shining Couture. Step 2, on the right, is the SinfulShine Top Coat. Both bottles had the same directions, which were to add two coats.
Shining Couture is a blue nail polish with green, bronze, and gold shimmer. The formula is good, but because it is a jelly formula, it is not opaque with two coats. Nonetheless, I then applied the Top Coat in two layers as well. My first impression of this nail polish was that it had a very strong odor. While I’m no stranger to the nail polish smell, this scent was way over the top. In addition, my manicure took a full hour before it was completely dry. That is much longer than I usually have to wait, so I wasn’t happy about that. The main problem, however, was that the polish began peeling off my nails the day after I applied it. That’s right, my manicure didn’t even last 24 hours!
Devoted by Jennifer Mathieu
First up are the items that I purchased! I usually try to aim for $50 even, but this time I went a bit over that amount. I just decided to get some extra goodies!
Next up, I used a coupon code from the Weekly Specials page to score this little makeup bag filled with sample products. While I’m not the biggest fan of foil packets, they are great for travel. I am really excited for the makeup bag, though! I use pouches for everything in my purse and luggage – cords, pens and pencils, accessories, and more. Always make sure to use a coupon code when you shop at Sephora!
Last but not least, I got my three free samples. I love Atelier perfume samples, and I’ve heard great things about Rita Hazan hair care. The last sample on the right is a Peter Thomas mask, so that will be fun to try, too. I have entire drawer of samples in my makeup collection, so these will be added to the pile.