- Tina Lynne

Audiobook Tour + Review + Excerpt: ANYONE BUT HIM by Cassie Graham

Anyone But Him
Cassie Graham
Audiobook Release Date: November 30, 2015
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Whitley Hayes is an ordinary girl with a gypsy heart. College is the only constant in her life. She’s made a lot of mistakes and she intends on keeping them in the past.
Move on and forget.
That’s her motto.

Jennings Cohen is no ordinary man—not at all. He would have never imagined his life would turn into such a spectacle. The tabloids exploit him, fans stalk him and the paparazzi are relentless. It’s not always fun being Jennings.
It doesn’t help that he has a secret. One that comes at a price he’s not sure he can pay.

Relationships get complicated and hearts shatter.

It’s not easy living a lie, but it’s easier than telling the truth.

Untitled design (3)You can purchase your copy and listen to a sample of Anyone But Him at the retailers listed below!

Audible | AmazonUntitled design (3)tina thoughts a review for you

First, let’s talk the story as a whole….

Anyone But Him is a fun new adult novel, filled with romance, secrets, and at the end a whole lot of drama and action. It was a bit hard to find my grove at the beginning. This story is written in dual POVS, both Whitley and Jennings. There is a large amount of introspection and snark, at sometimes a bit much for my taste, but once I familiarized myself with Cassie’s writing, I was set. This story is about a boy and a girl who fall in love. But life is never that simple. Both Jennings and Whitley have secrets. Whitley is living in the shadow of a spotlight trained specifically on her best friend. She enjoys her anonymity and lives her quiet life, looking forward to graduation. Jennings is looking for something more. He is an A list actor, living the American dream, but his life is all about the big screen and it is lonely. There is little true deep connection in his life outside of a couple of friends. When they meet by chance, it is all very kismet and cliche yet perfect. There is an instant connection. From that moment things progress at a steady pace. It is a story of two people who connect and learn that there could be more to life. They both have been through a lot and deserve to have a happily ever after. Yet lies and ever after endings rarely coincide. These two are keeping major secrets about themselves. Rather quickly in the story, you see Jennings’ secret. It is a major focal point of the story. Whitley’s secret is one you don’t truly understand until much later in the book. She has been through tragedy and her secrets are well hidden. As if those factors aren’t enough, Jennings public life and fans bring chaos and a bit of fear into their love affair.

For the characters, Whitley grated my nerves a bit in the beginning but the more I got to know her the more I started to enjoy her personality. Jennings is quite the character with a complicated mind who makes the story interesting. When these two star in a story together, there is no shortage of drama, romance, and misguided ideals. This story begins as a story of two people falling in love. The sweet moments are adorable. I loved the theme of the stars in this story! It was romantic and perfect! Then there is an element of second chances for Whitley as she deals with her secrets and past head on, finally able to begin to live her life free from fear and self loathing. When the surprise plot twist appears, I was shocked at what happened. BAM! It set the last quarter of the book on fast forward and it was intense and I loved it! I enjoyed watch two strong characters fall in love, learning through trial and error, that they are worthy of this once in a lifetime love. They connect and that connection has the power to be something beautiful and lasting or break them into a million pieces. Anyone But Him is a story that will draw you in slowly. It will be sweet and mysterious, taking you on an adventure you did not know you signed up for!

Now for the audio part….

Honestly, I am not completely sold on the narrators. However, I am a very picky audiobook listener, so take my opinion very lightly. I like what I like and if I am listening to it for 12 hours I want it to click with me. Personally, I felt the female reader was a bit frustrating in her portrayal and presentation. It was rough for me at the beginning to get used to her cadence and voice. The male reader was a much better fit for me and easier to listen to. As with every audiobook, listeners connect better with different narrators. With these two, they were not my go to favorites but the story was intriguing and fun, which allowed me to focus on what was happening.

Anyone But Him teaser
excerpt alert
 “I very desperately want to kiss you.”
My mouth forms into a line. “And that’s bad because…?”
He takes a deep intake of air into his lungs and looks at me. I mean—really looks at me. Deep into my being. “Because I’m afraid if do, I won’t be able to stop.”
I elevate my body and collapse onto his chest. “Then, don’t.” If anything is like his previous kisses, I’m in for a passionate road ahead.
His hand reaches behind my head and I watch in slow motion as his beautiful face moves toward mine. The moment our lips touch, all of my other senses go haywire, feeling everything. Pleasure, need, hunger…want. So much want. I want everything he has to offer. In this moment, I don’t care what the future holds. I don’t care if he finds out about my shattered past and hates it. In this instant, I only care about him and the feelings he’s unleashing in and on my body.
His grip on my hair tightens as the kiss deepens. We moan together, feeling the pleasure poring from our bodies. His lips are sweet at first. Restrained and guarded. Almost as if he’s willing himself to slow down. But, I don’t want him controlled. I want him wild. I want him like the rain pours down. Taking no prisoners. The rain doesn’t care who it drenches; it just comes down, down, down. Soaking you. I want him forceful and firm, taking me how he wants. Just like the rain.
The thought of stopping makes me physically ill. This moment, being with him, in his warm, comforting embrace might be the most beautiful moment of my life. It’s heated and perfect. Stopping isn’t an option.
My hands move down his torso, taut and hard. His muscles move and bend under my touch and I feel myself growing wet as every second passes. The swirl of his tongue sends me high and I bite his bottom lip.
“I don’t think I’ve wanted anything or anyone as much as I want you, my Pretty Girl,” he hums in between kissing up and down my neck. “Nothing is as good as being with you. You have me soaring.”
He doesn’t have much time to say anything else before I’m pulling him up by his shirt, lifting it up and over his head. He grabs at my blouse, unbuttoning every button with detailed precision. When he opens my shirt, he simply stares, eyes electric. He puts his hand in between my breasts and just touches—feels.
“Come to bed with me. As much as I want you. Here. Now, I’ve gotta have you in bed. Slowly.”
I nod my head, unable to form any coherent words. It’s almost as if the hand that’s resting on my chest is somehow digging into my body, willing my heart to beat violently. He’s able to control me.
I wonder if I do the same.
I gently move off of his body and stand, watching him swing his legs off the couch. His body lifts and like a peacock, he looks big and alarming. Proud.
Grabbing my hand, he leads me up the stairs, stopping half way to pin me against the wall to thoroughly kiss me.
Hauling me to his room, he opens the door, turns on a small light on his nightstand and the cool air whooshes against my face. The blindingly white down blanket shines bright, but the dark, patterned pillows offset the brightness of the covers.
“Christ, you’re beautiful.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cassie Graham is the author of Unable to Resist and Anyone But Him. She also hates talking about herself. It makes her nervous and somewhat sweaty. So, she’s going to make this short.

While writing is her true passion, her family is even more important. Her ultimate happy place is sitting in her house with her husband and daughter while writing stories about lovers who are meant to be together. She’d live in that world forever if she could.

She lives in Arizona with her husband, daughter and two crazy puppies.