Nikki reviews: STINGER by Mia Sheridan

Title: Stinger
Series: A Sign of Love Novel #3
Author: Mia Sheridan

Grace Hamilton was the girl with a plan. She knew exactly where her life was going and prided herself on always achieving her goals. It was who she was, and how she lived her life. She never stepped outside the lines, and never considered what she might desire and whom she was actually trying so hard to please. Until him…

Carson Stinger was a man who didn't play by any rules except his own. Working in the adult entertainment industry, he didn't care what others thought, and took each day as it came, no direction, no plan. He knew what women wanted from him and believed it was all he had to offer. Until her…

When circumstances forced them to spend several hours together, they walked away changed. But for two people who never should have meshed, overcoming the reality of their vastly different lives wasn't possible. At least not yet…

Add on:

Purchase from:

Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Smashwords

~Review~

I was given the chance to beta-read this new novel by Mia, and yeah, it was so much of a privilege because the story is... WOW.

So what do we have here?

Carson meets Grace.

Straight Male Performer meets Lawyer-in-the-making.

Porn Star meets Prosecutor.

It was a chance meeting. It was fate. It was serendipity. They were destined to happen.

We got a broken boy whose past is as fucked as he could get and he let it define his future. He has always believed that there is no other path for him to take but the one his mother has shown him. He accepted it, embraced it and lived with it without questions until he bumped into a girl that he never expected to be the reason why he would start to think about his life direction differently. He’s a live-by-the-moment kind of guy with a worry-about-no-shit-until-it-bites-you-in-the-ass attitude. He’s Carson Stinger, a 6’1” male specimen with wheat-colored hair, lush eyelashes and hazel eyes.

Opposite the pole, we got an uptight girl whose life is all planned out with a blue-print. She also has her reasons why she grew up the way she did and that’s also because of her mother and the death of her brother. Once she set a goal for herself, a tunnel vision is also set. She never strays on her path, she’s super-glued to it. She has everything under control, or so she believed, until he bumped into a guy who taught her that life is wild. She was a live-with-a-direction kind of girl with a worry-about-everything-until-panic-attack-comes attitude. She’s Grace Hamilton, a 5’3” blue-eyed blonde girl who aspires to be everything she thinks her mother is looking for.

Here is my Grace Hamilton:

And my Carson Stinger:

I know girls!!! Carson with a scorpion tattoo!!! ;)

And another picture of Carson:

And more Carson:

Uhumm yeah okay, I’ll stop now. ;)

I love how Mia executed the characters in the story. They are totally opposite people and with characters coming from opposite directions, we expect them to clash. And they did, with their first meeting.

"No, not at all. Looks like we're both here to learn how to be the best at getting people off." 

My brows snapped down. "Well that's… that's a disgusting way to put it." 

He moved closer to me until I was forced to step back. "Why? Getting people off is such a rush, Buttercup. Don't be ashamed of doing it well."

And the hilarious meeting at the bar. This is one of my most favorite scenes!

He was thoughtful for a minute, turning back to the bar and taking a drink of his beer. 

Finally, he turned to me. "How did we make those two kids?" 

My brow furrowed. "Uh, you might want to re-think your career choice if you don't know…" 

"What I mean is, what position did we make our two kids in? Doggy style? Backwards cowgirl? The Garfield? Flying Circus? Butterfly? Table Lotus? Bended-Knee?"

And yes, it was just their second meeting and Carson is already talking about sexual positions with Grace! I laughed my ass out at this scene and what I posted here is just a part of it.

I also loved that Mia decided to write Stinger in dual point of views so we can live through Carson’s thoughts. The transitions between the two point of views were done smoothly I didn't had a hard time reading it. I've read books before with dual point of views and some confused the hell out of me when switching POVs but Stinger, I think is done perfectly.

There are many funny moments with Stinger and I loved Mia more for that. Not just between Carson and Grace but also with other characters like Abby, Grace’s bestfriend and even with Josh, Carson’s friend.

But if you are following my reviews with Mia’s work, it is not the humor why I fell in love with this author’s works. It is because she never fails to warm my heart with all those beautiful life lessons. I have somehow, long ago, considered this woman’s words as my own life lessons. There are so many insights in her books that make you want to reflect on your own life and this one’s my favorite:

"In life, there are those who save us, sometimes in big ways and sometimes in small. Sometimes that means being set free from a dark, windowless room, or being pulled out of a burning building. More often, it means being saved from ourselves, and made to finally believe that letting someone love you isn't just a big lie that you're unwilling to tell."

I have always been a fan of love separated by time and distance, and yet that love prevailed because I always believed that those kinds of love are destined to last forever. I know I’m such a sucker for romance. Carson and Grace’s love story stood the test of time and distance, differences and regrets, fate and life choices. Theirs was a story I wish I could call my own, it wasn’t easy I know, but I think what they both went through was all worth everything.

Having all said that, you think I was so blown away by this story, yeah?

But, no.

I wasn't blown-away, no, I think I wasn't. I was uprooted from myself and transported to the world Mia created in the form of Stinger. It was that beautiful. It was that real. It was a story that would reside in your heart and resonate even after you've read it.

I wanted to say that Stinger is the story I’ve been waiting for my whole life to read but I don’t want to swallow my own words when Mia release another novel for the Sign of Love series, so yeah, I wouldn’t push my luck on that one because I believe in the gift of this woman, and I know for sure that she’ll continue to alter my bookworm universe for as long as she writes.

She did it with Leo. She outdid it in Leo’s Chance. And after reading Stinger, I think she surpassed what she’s accomplished with those two novels.

I’ve said it on my email, but I want to post it here as well:

I am so looking forward to more stories from my lovely storyteller. I was never wrong when I read her debut novel. Remember my review of Leo? Me saying that there is something with her writing? It's a gift. And we readers are so incredibly lucky because she decided to be selfless and share that gift to us.

Rating:

DIAMOND RECORD

If you want to listen to Mia’s Stinger playlist, it’s here.

Here my Stinger playlist:

All I Ever Wanted by Train
The Look by Ryan Tedder
Like You by Artstrong
What Hurts The Most by Rascal Flatts
I Call It Love by Lionel Richie
Everyday by Rascal Flatts
Sunrise by Rascal Flatts
Cuddy Buddy by Trey Songz and Twista

And if you want to listen to my Stinger playlist you can find it below. The Look by Ryan Tedder is my Carson and Grace song. Enjoy.

~Playlist~

Also, here are some teasers I made for Stinger.

About the Author

Mia Sheridan is an avid reader, and now writer of romance and erotic novels. She live in Cincinnati, Ohio with her husband who is a police officer and her biggest fan (not necessarily in that order). They have four children here on earth and one in heaven. When she's not sitting on her couch with her head buried in her Kindle, she can be found writing or doing anything creative from building a patio, to sewing pillows. The wild hairs she get know no bounds. Leo is her debut novel, but her head is swimming with more… 
 Stalk her: Website | Twitter | Facebook