Just Ella by Annette K. Larsen
Book Summary:
A Proper Romance
Ariella was only looking for a distraction, something to break up the monotony of palace life. What she found was a young man willing to overlook her title and show her a new and vibrant way of life. But when her growing feelings for Gavin spiral out of control and clash with the expectations of her station, she will discover that the consequences of her curiosity are far more severe than she’d imagined.
I watched in helpless horror as two guards hauled Gavin to his feet and dragged him from the room. My voice was frozen, unable to protest as another guard took hold of my arm, leading me upstairs. From the confines of my room, I stared into the darkness beyond my window, hoping to catch one more glimpse of Gavin. He was gone, and I wondered if he would have been better off if he had never met me.
I write clean romance. Why? Because that’s what I love to read, but over the years I’ve discovered it’s quite a challenge to find good clean romance. I believe it’s a genre that many people are looking for and too few authors are writing. My first novel, Just Ella, took me many years to write because I wanted it to be more than just a cutesy love story. I wanted it to have depth, to feel genuine. Hopefully I succeeded, but you’ll have to be the judge.
Tifferz Take~
I loved, loved Just Ella! I felt all of Ella's emotions in this story! Ella needs a friend and finds a friendship with Gavin. The friendship is put to the test time and time again. . I thought the world of Gavin. His heart was in the right place and an overall likeable guy. He really helps Ella find herself and learns so much from him. My personal favorite part was Ella's first few kisses, and the waterfall. Such a special happy place! I was sad for Ella and how her family treated her. Jeshua is after Ella and wants to marry her. I was shocked at the lows that Jeshua stooped to. I felt so happy with the ending, but I needed more. I wish the author would have written an epilogue. I do think it would be fun to read the rest of Ella's sister's stories! A brilliant read and I want more from this author! I highly recommend this book, I was so happy I did!
Just FYI~ This story does not contain any swearing or sexual situations.
Tifferz Take~
I loved, loved Just Ella! I felt all of Ella's emotions in this story! Ella needs a friend and finds a friendship with Gavin. The friendship is put to the test time and time again. . I thought the world of Gavin. His heart was in the right place and an overall likeable guy. He really helps Ella find herself and learns so much from him. My personal favorite part was Ella's first few kisses, and the waterfall. Such a special happy place! I was sad for Ella and how her family treated her. Jeshua is after Ella and wants to marry her. I was shocked at the lows that Jeshua stooped to. I felt so happy with the ending, but I needed more. I wish the author would have written an epilogue. I do think it would be fun to read the rest of Ella's sister's stories! A brilliant read and I want more from this author! I highly recommend this book, I was so happy I did!
Just FYI~ This story does not contain any swearing or sexual situations.
Chellz~
This is one of the BEST stories I have read in a long
time!!!!!!!! From the first couple pages I was hooked. This story
captured my attention and I did not want to put it down. In fact, the
only reason I did put it down was because I did have to get sleep so I
could go to work the next day.
Ella is a wonderful heroine and I so enjoyed Gavin. The love story
was beautifully told. I enjoyed their friendship that blossomed and
the challenges of Ella being royal. Ella is a fabulous judge of
character and her instincts were correct about Jeshua. I
was happy with the way the story unfolded. This is a fabulous read that
I enjoyed every minute of. I do wish there would have been an
epilogue, it would have been nice to know more about the happy ending. I
would like to see that Ariella becomes queen, but maybe that is another
story to be told.
Source~ Blog Tour for Honest Review
~EXCERPT~
We both worked silently for several minutes until he spoke abruptly. “I’ve been wondering something.” I looked up to see him kneeling at the edge of the stream, peering over his shoulder at me. “What’s that?” I asked. He was very selective about the things he asked me. “Do you remember the first time you realized you were royalty?” I replied without giving it much thought. “I suppose I’ve always known.” “There was never a moment when it hit you that you were meant for greater things than most people?” His question was humbling and made me a little sad. Truthfully, I had never seen myself that way. Being royalty had become tedious and I often resented it, which was precisely why I was sitting out in the forest with him. “No, I never had a moment like that.” Strictly speaking, it was a truthful answer. I had never felt I was meant for greater things. “You just always knew what you would become?” I looked out at the forest. I wanted to answer his question, but found my answer difficult to put into words. I suppose it would be simplest to say I dreaded what I would become. “Ella?” I focused on Gavin and tried to answer. “I suppose I have an idea of what I am expected to become, but,” I smiled to myself as I admitted, “I think I’ll end up disappointing everyone.”
Author Annette K. Larsen I was born in Utah, but grew up in Flagstaff Arizona and St. Louis Missouri, the fifth of seven children. I attended college at Southern Virginia University and Brigham Young University where I studied English and Theater. I now live in Idaho with my husband and four children. I have Charlotte Bronte to thank for the courage to write novels. After being bombarded with assigned reading about women who justified abandoning either their families or their principles in the name of love, I had the great fortune of reading Jane Eyre. And that was it: finally a heroine who understood that being moral and making the right choice was hard, and sometimes it hurt, but it was still worth it. After rereading it several years later, I realized that if I wanted more books to exist with the kinds of heroines I admired, then I might as well write a few myself. My books are about women who face hard choices, who face pain and rejection and often have to sacrifice what they want for what is right. The consequences are often difficult or unpleasant, but it the end, doing what’s right will always be worth it. I believe there is no substitute for good writing or good chocolate. Fortunately, one often leads to the other.
Thanks for sharing the great excerpt and the giveaway. Sounds like a really good book. evamillien at gmail dot com
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