TITLE: A LITTLE FAITH
AUTHOR: EMMA JAMES
SERIES: MEN OF OCEAN BEACH # 1
GENRE : ADULT CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
COVER DESIGNER : JEMINA VENTER
Photographer : Rory Leatherman – Ocean Beach Scenic Teasers – https://instagram.com/rory_leatherman/
SYNOPSIS
“You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.”
~ Bob Marley
Faith was nearly fifteen when her life was torn apart, she sheltered herself from knowing anything about that fateful day.
Six years later she is older and stronger and has decided to confront this sexy brotherhood of hot men she ignored for her own survival.
Harley, Keanu, Text, Levi and Retro will reveal to Faith all is not what it seems and she will discover the level of strength these friends possess.
Text won't talk. The burden of guilt he carries around is too heavy. Faith will uncover the secrets they have all been shielding from her in humorous and emotional ways.
Faith isn’t going back to Dallas in a hurry, not until she can help those that need her the most and Text will need her, it just might take a little longer for him to realize this.
This is a story of new beginnings, a strong brotherhood of sexy guys and a love that has been lost along the way. It is a story with twists and surprises that will tug at your heart as well as make you laugh.
Humor is a weapon that can only last so long until life peels the layers back and what is underneath and hurting shows through.
Faith wasn’t there for them when they needed her, but she damn well will make sure she is now.
Welcome to Ocean Beach.
Sometimes you just have to have A Little Faith.
Emma James has blessed the book world with something absolutely life changing. I feel like I must have been living under a rock to have only found out about this series a month ago. The words and characters have taken over all of my thoughts, and I have recommended these books to every person I know.
The 'Men Of Ocean Beach' series so far consists of two books with more in the works. A Little Faith and Hope is Lost are both written in multiple POV's, which gave both of the books such a superior uniqueness. There isn't just one Hero or one Heroine that inspire or affect you, each and every character does and they all hold so much importance in your heart.
A Little Faith is filled with such sadness from the start. I was completely blown away by the story line and its creative depth. Every single one of the characters are suffering because of a life altering disaster they they experienced together and are once again, even if it years after the event, together to put the past to rest. But what stands out to me more than anything is that this group of friends, they are so loyal, so compassionate, so strong and they are there for each other no matter what, despite the demons they are fighting individually.
Faith is a huge importance to the story, a beautiful female character who holds the ability to give the guys the peace they have needed for a long time. Years since she has seen them, she decides that it's now or never to visit the guys who have the answers she needs to give herself some peace. This story holds an incredible depth, and the fact that each character gets their own spotlight and each character builds with layer upon layer of emotion, personality and something completely unique to each of them makes this book so intense, devastatingly beautiful and simply breathtaking.
As the story progresses, it takes you on such a powerful journey making this book so special. You feel such an array of emotions. I laughed out loud, I felt each of the characters turmoil, I LOVED looking at the places named in the book on Google. And honestly it is without a doubt one of the best books I have read in my life.
I devoured every single word of A Little Faith and as soon as I had finished I jumped straight into Hope Is Lost, book two in the Men Of Ocean Beach series.
Emma James, I feel so complete. It's like I have been searching for your books for so long, because as a reader they are everything I crave, and so much more than I expected. I know without a doubt that I will return to this series over and over again, because they are just absolutely EVERYTHING.
This book held so much beauty and I honestly am still lost for words, but I sure as hell am going to try and write this review. The songs that inspired the author when she wrote the book is such a pivotal part of the reading too. I can't listen to Shelter by Birdy without sobbing my heart out and thinking of these characters.
The boys from the first book, along with Faith return to this second book in the series, and a few new characters, once again all holding their own importance, individuality and dynamic to the story.
These characters are a unit. They come as a whole package and support each other endlessly.
The story continues where A Little Faith left off and I just can't praise it or recommend it enough. If I could read any books for the very first time again, I know it would be these outstanding novels by Emma James. She is so freaking talented and her writing style just captivates you.
Keanu is a main focus in this book and I swear, he is just so adorable, so funny, but has a lot of sexiness going on too. In addition to that, he also has his own insecurities and it makes me want to pick him out of the book, make him into a real life person just so I can hold him. I was absolutely smitten by everything he did, everything he said and his sweet charming actions (I won't spoil that). The sweetest damn thing in the world happened in this book with Jase/Text laying claim on Faith and it just melted my heart. Emma James also delivered twists and turns that gave us the mother of all cliffhangers which is another thing I absolutely LOVE as a reader! If you want to feel a deep connection to every character mentioned in a story....THIS IS YOUR BOOK/SERIES. If you want to experience something so epic, so consuming, so BEAUTIFUL..... THIS IS YOUR BOOK/SERIES. If you want to be left with the biggest book hangover known to mankind, you want a book to wreck you for all others...... WITHOUT A DOUBT, THIS IS THE BOOK/SERIES.
A month on from finishing this book and I still think about it every single day! I NEED BOOK THREE IN THE SERIES LIKE I NEED MY LAST BREATH! I will sell body parts, my house, my man EVERYTHING to get my hands on it!
Emma James, you are without a doubt one of the most talented authors I know. You push yourself to the limits and beyond to create such devastatingly perfect scenes, life changing words and I feel so honoured to have read these books.
Review by: SAM
6 PHENOMENAL STARS
Review by: SAM
One whole month. That is how long it has taken me to formulate words for this review. The same amount of time it has taken me to really FEEL another book. The main reason for this is because I wanted to be able to give the books the justice they deserve.
The other reason is that to me, a review always feels so final once I have written it. So I was just not ready to let these books go and a month on I still think about them every single day. They have impacted on me so much as areader, I couldn't read another book for ten days after I had finished. I tried, but I could not get the characters, or these incredible words out of my head.Emma James has blessed the book world with something absolutely life changing. I feel like I must have been living under a rock to have only found out about this series a month ago. The words and characters have taken over all of my thoughts, and I have recommended these books to every person I know.
The 'Men Of Ocean Beach' series so far consists of two books with more in the works. A Little Faith and Hope is Lost are both written in multiple POV's, which gave both of the books such a superior uniqueness. There isn't just one Hero or one Heroine that inspire or affect you, each and every character does and they all hold so much importance in your heart.
A Little Faith is filled with such sadness from the start. I was completely blown away by the story line and its creative depth. Every single one of the characters are suffering because of a life altering disaster they they experienced together and are once again, even if it years after the event, together to put the past to rest. But what stands out to me more than anything is that this group of friends, they are so loyal, so compassionate, so strong and they are there for each other no matter what, despite the demons they are fighting individually.
Faith is a huge importance to the story, a beautiful female character who holds the ability to give the guys the peace they have needed for a long time. Years since she has seen them, she decides that it's now or never to visit the guys who have the answers she needs to give herself some peace. This story holds an incredible depth, and the fact that each character gets their own spotlight and each character builds with layer upon layer of emotion, personality and something completely unique to each of them makes this book so intense, devastatingly beautiful and simply breathtaking.
As the story progresses, it takes you on such a powerful journey making this book so special. You feel such an array of emotions. I laughed out loud, I felt each of the characters turmoil, I LOVED looking at the places named in the book on Google. And honestly it is without a doubt one of the best books I have read in my life.
I devoured every single word of A Little Faith and as soon as I had finished I jumped straight into Hope Is Lost, book two in the Men Of Ocean Beach series.
Emma James, I feel so complete. It's like I have been searching for your books for so long, because as a reader they are everything I crave, and so much more than I expected. I know without a doubt that I will return to this series over and over again, because they are just absolutely EVERYTHING.
6 OUTSTANDING STARS!
Hope Is Lost:
I'm so freaking glad I was able to jump straight into this beautiful story immediately after finishing A Little Faith. But still so mad and want to kick myself repeatedly for not reading them sooner.This book held so much beauty and I honestly am still lost for words, but I sure as hell am going to try and write this review. The songs that inspired the author when she wrote the book is such a pivotal part of the reading too. I can't listen to Shelter by Birdy without sobbing my heart out and thinking of these characters.
The boys from the first book, along with Faith return to this second book in the series, and a few new characters, once again all holding their own importance, individuality and dynamic to the story.
These characters are a unit. They come as a whole package and support each other endlessly.
The story continues where A Little Faith left off and I just can't praise it or recommend it enough. If I could read any books for the very first time again, I know it would be these outstanding novels by Emma James. She is so freaking talented and her writing style just captivates you.
Keanu is a main focus in this book and I swear, he is just so adorable, so funny, but has a lot of sexiness going on too. In addition to that, he also has his own insecurities and it makes me want to pick him out of the book, make him into a real life person just so I can hold him. I was absolutely smitten by everything he did, everything he said and his sweet charming actions (I won't spoil that). The sweetest damn thing in the world happened in this book with Jase/Text laying claim on Faith and it just melted my heart. Emma James also delivered twists and turns that gave us the mother of all cliffhangers which is another thing I absolutely LOVE as a reader! If you want to feel a deep connection to every character mentioned in a story....THIS IS YOUR BOOK/SERIES. If you want to experience something so epic, so consuming, so BEAUTIFUL..... THIS IS YOUR BOOK/SERIES. If you want to be left with the biggest book hangover known to mankind, you want a book to wreck you for all others...... WITHOUT A DOUBT, THIS IS THE BOOK/SERIES.
A month on from finishing this book and I still think about it every single day! I NEED BOOK THREE IN THE SERIES LIKE I NEED MY LAST BREATH! I will sell body parts, my house, my man EVERYTHING to get my hands on it!
Emma James, you are without a doubt one of the most talented authors I know. You push yourself to the limits and beyond to create such devastatingly perfect scenes, life changing words and I feel so honoured to have read these books.
Review by: SAM
6 PHENOMENAL STARS
Review by: AMY
Laughter, pain, renewal, triumph surrounded by amazing togetherness. These friends have grown together, lived and lost all together. The term no man left behind is so fitting with this group because everyone has everyone’s back. No one feels without one of the others feeling right there with them. They have built one of the strongest friend/ family units I’ve ever read and it was such a pleasure to feel along with them. This book was an amazing showing of courage of the mind, body and most of all the heart. Emma breathed life into each and every one of the characters to the point that while reading it was so easy to become lost in what felt like the reality of Ocean beach. I was captivated and drawn into this amazing story from start to finish.
OH MY GOODNESS these characters ROCKED SO HARD!!! I was in love with each and every one of them for every reason imaginable. They were so in tune with each other with was amazing to read!! I loved how close they all were and how no matter what, they had each other. The boys were brothers from different mothers and loyal to the bone. The way they loved hard and it was so beautiful. Oh and protective… incredibly protective of every aspect of the family the built together.
Enter the ladies. Faith who is soft, broken and completely oblivious to the sheer magnitude of these amazing men. She stumbles upon them after some time away and is BLOWN away by the terrific unit that they have become. She is completely taken back by the way the men builds each other up and in turn share some of that with her. Crazy bad ass Phoenix is a force to be reckoned with and she adds just the right amount of “hell” yea to this story. Sweet as pie and winner of the most patient person on the planet award goes to Birdie!! I loved her so much. She was the best at subtle and so strong and determined to find and rekindle the love of her life.
This book was a recommend to me and I was so grateful to have had the chance to read it. It was a massive page turner leaving me finishing it in record time! I loved Emma writing with her heart on her sleeve and not playing it completely safe. These characters were amazingly written and fiercely loved. I was so in awe of this book I couldn’t WAIT to read the next one!!! This series and the men of Ocean Beach did not disappoint and the writing is flawless. I 100% recommend this book and give it 5+ stars completely!!!
5 Stars
Review by: ERIN
Where can I even start? This story left me crushed, crying, and filled with an undying hope all at the same time. I love the way the story was written, in multiple POV’s and with each character getting their own piece of the story the whole way through. At first I thought it might be harder to follow with so many main characters all at the same time, but I found with this storyline it flows effortlessly and wouldn’t have been the same story with each character having their own book.
Each of these characters has been through a horrendous ordeal. Each was affected in different ways, and each is coping in their own way. But through it all, they have been each other’s support system. But the time has come to finally get some of the closure they all so desperately need.
I think that Faith is a very pivotal character. She has ignored these men too long while dealing with her grief. She is determined to help them out and not run away and hide again. I believe that she is going to become the good luck charm for each of these men. She is going to help them heal in ways they didn’t know they needed.
I very quickly became addicted to this story, like Chapter 1! I loved it so much that as soon as I was finished I bought the second book and stayed up all night to read it! I am very excited to see where this story goes and want to see each of these characters get their much deserved HEA’s!
5 stars (wish it could be higher!)
Review by: TATIA
It's been a long time since I read a book that wasn't solely focused around the romance between two people. I apparently needed it though, because I devoured A Little Faith. A story centered around a group of people who have grown up together and have faced a tragedy that has affected them all in different ways.
This group that consists of Faith, Retro, Harley, Jase, Levi, and Keanu, are such a diverse bunch. There is one things that binds them, but that has also changed them all over the years, taught them to become stronger in certain ways. I loved seeing the way they interacted together, how they each looked at like with a different outlook. It was a story that had me completely mesmerized. While the POV changes with each chapter, I did not mind it at all. I enjoyed getting inside everyone's head and seeing what they were thinking, how they were handling life. From the very beginning, I was swept away, with a vision of what I thought it would look like to truly be apart of it all. From the first word to the very last, where we are left hanging to pick up the next book...I.NEED.MORE! I can't wait to continue on..
5 Stars
Review by: DONNA
WOW! This book was amazing, heart wrenching, and clearly saying, "don't take anything for granted". Right from the beginning, Emma Faith makes you feel like your right their with the guys vacationing and enjoying yourself on abeautiful island. Then, tradegy strikes that changes the lives of so many people on a level that you can't even imagine! It takes poor Faith years to be ready to let Chance go. Realizing just affected her brother's friends lives are by the devastating event that took her brother years ago. So, I am saying this now before you sit down to read this book. Get a box of tissues!!!! This book should get more than a 5 on the rating scale.
5 Stars
BOOK TRAILER
AUTHOR BIO
Emma James lives in Queensland, Australia with her supportive husband, three children and a big black Labrador. Life is busy and most entertaining in the James household.
Writing has been a part of her life for many years. Life was getting on and it was time to put her fears aside and do what she does best. It was time to show readers what she was made of, take that leap off the diving board and see where it takes her.
Emma is a creative person at heart. She loves to read as much as write, devouring books into the wee hours of the morning.
Who needs sleep, right?
CONNECT with RORY LEATHERMAN:
PURCHASE LINKS
A LITTLE FAITH
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1R1sBSy
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1v0DZNn
Amazon Aus: http://bit.ly/1tCcU2F
Amazon CA: http://amzn.to/1FIL2Cq
IBooks: http://bit.ly/1ytPTTt
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1syNcMW
Kobo: http://bit.ly/11Gg0w2
HOPE IS LOST
Amazon US : http://amzn.to/1LzJkI7
Amazon AUS : http://bit.ly/1AXnPfE
Amazon UK : http://amzn.to/1vMugfz
IBooks: http://bit.ly/1AdJeQQ
B&N : http://bit.ly/1890894
Kobo : http://bit.ly/1JuKoh9
EXCERPT – A LITTLE FAITH
FAITH POV
I’m swiveling back and forth, searching the crowd for Harley.
“Hey, short stuff.” A deep voice slices into my thoughts from over my right shoulder.
I slowly turn around, meeting Harley’s smiling face. I may have been short once, but now I am five-foot-eight, not exactly below-average height.
I take in Harley. He’s tall—six-four, at least—and gorgeous with light brown, short hair; tanned skin; and does he have some ink work on his arms? I’m normally very curious about tattoos, but now isn’t the time to look.
I know I’m looking him up and down, but it’s been so long, and he has changed. The softer boy features have been replaced by a big, muscular, chiseled man.
I swallow.
“Wow, is that really you, Harley Madden?” I’m drinking him in. I don’t remember Harley being so big and buff. His charcoal t-shirt molds tightly to his chest like a second skin. He wasn’t this muscular the last time I saw him. His belted, black jeans and boots complete his handsome look that has quite a few people in the crowd appraising him. He looks a little dangerous in his dark clothing. He would make Will purr like the cat who got the cream. I must admit, even I’m a little taken back.
He leans in and grabs me in a bear hug, lifting me off the ground, leaving me a little breathless. My face is nestled in his neck, catching his scent of cologne and soap.
Wow.
“Okay, big guy, you can stop squeezing the life out of me now,” I try to breathe out. He loosens his hold and slowly let’s go while I take a step back.
“You look amazing, Harley.” I find myself smiling. It feels good. I was worried about feeling awkward meeting Harley again after so long, but something just clicks. He was my brother’s best friend, and I’ve known him all my life. “It’s been a long time.”
“I could say the same about you. I might have to start calling you Faith.” He flashes me an amused grin, showing me perfect, white teeth and a dimple.
The baggage carousel starts up and everybody squeezes in tighter, trying to jockey for a position to get their luggage when it appears.
“Whoa!” I’m already beginning to feel less nervous having Harley here with me when I’m suddenly knocked off balance. Harley’s left arm snags me around the waist, bringing me up against his hard side. He shoots the person beside me a dirty look. Some people really do need to chill out when they travel.
I step away from him when I notice my case coming towards me.
Harley stops me with a gentle, firm hand on my arm. “I’ll get it for you, which one?”
With one, bright blue suitcase and camera bag in his hands, Harley walks me out the sliding doors of the airport and we cross to the parking garage.
The sun is shining, and my grey hoodie jacket is making me too hot. I unzip it, taking it off as I’m walking, revealing a tight white tank top. Much cooler.
Harley is staring at my chest and nearly trips over. I roll my eyes. You can never take the boy out of the man.
“Harley, are you finished staring?” I laugh a little at the look on his face. “So I grew up.”
“You certainly did,” he mutters and looks away. I could have sworn I heard him swear and mumble something about guard duty.
AUTHOR LINKS
Twitter: @emmajamesbooks
What an amazing posting. Thank you !!! Love all the reviews. <3
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