I just wanted a freaking cup of coffee. After all, hard-charging lawyers like me require caffeine to survive court battles.I didn’t expect my life to change. I didn’t expect the unbelievably hot guy behind the counter—all green eyes and golden surfer curls—to tilt my world. And I REALLY didn’t expect his particular brand of laid-back alpha male style. I’d been so secure in my own little world. … so secure in my own little world. One with Rules about what I do—and what I definitely do NOT do.
Especially in bed.
Rule Number 9? No dirty talking? There’s no earthly reason why I’d want anyone to do that.
I may be stuck-up, but my Rules kept me safe and happy.
Okay, I wasn’t happy. Depressed and repressed is more like it.
But am I ready for Mister Barista to obliterate every Rule in my book?
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“The Sun and the Moon” is a fantastic romance that is one part sweet and one part funny, while managing to attend to real life situations of depression and discovering your confidence and self love again. I loved everything about this story… Amelia’s self-consciousness in the bedroom is very relatable and Ryan is the perfect match for her—helping her become comfortable with her sexuality and breaking that silly list of rules, which I’m sure every woman at some point has had. The narration was perfection! I love when a book has a duet narration, and Tor Thom and Charley Ongel are an amazing pair. Charley always captures the fun and quirky personality of the female POV, and Tor adds that extra swoony, sexy voice that you desire from the male. They are quite the dynamic duo!
4 Star Review of The Sun & The Moon by Leslie McAdam
Audio Review:
The chemistry between Tor and Charley is immediately obvious and this makes listening that much more enjoyable.
Overall I enjoyed this story but there were times that heroine Amelia Crowley frustrated me.
I understand that she has been severely depressed and suicidal, struggling to come to terms with the devastating loss she has suffered, but even so there were times I wanted to smack some sense in to her.
When she meets Ryan Fielding whilst ordering coffee, Amelia has no idea how much her life is about to change.
Can Amelia let go of the rules she follows and let Ryan in? Will she take a chance on a relationship or is she destined to be alone?
The issues that were faced, the loss, the depression, the low self esteem, were all handled well and with care.
A passionate and at times angsty story which will draw you in.
Beautiful. Engrossing. Uplifting. This book is all those things and more! Amelia and Ryan crossed paths in high school, but so much has happened to both of them in the ten years since.
Story includes a gripping – and relatable – take on depression and loss, but while there are heavy moments, the overall tone is not dark or negative. Rather, the focus is on the journey out of darkness, of bringing focus around to the light.
Absolutely recommend!
Sometimes you just need a little sun to bloom
I loved this book! Amelia is a strong, smart, accomplished woman who is trying to break out of her shell. She meets Ryan at the coffee shop she stops in to wait to go to court. She finds her interest peaked by the beautiful ‘sun god’ with his dimples and mesmerizing eyes. And so begins her journey to happiness away from the darkness she’d been living with and her ridiculous rules.
Let me start by saying that I have read several books by Leslie MacAdam and her books all have well developed characters with unique and different perspectives. The Sun and The Moon is no exception. Set against the backdrop of of the sun, sand and surf of the California coast, MacAdam takes us on an emotional journey through the life of Amelia Crowley. A devastating tragedy drove Amelia into a deep depression. It is a battle that she struggles with daily; feeling too little or feeling too much. This beautiful, broken women, has isolated her self and her heart for fear of getting hurt. Structure and rules bring her comfort, but she knows that in order to live a life worth living, she needs to break free. On a random trip to a coffeehouse she meets Ryan. Ryan is all sandy har and sun kissed skin and dimples Amelia wants to spend some time getting acquainted with. Ryan is a self proclaim “sensualist” and free spirit. The exact contrast to buttoned up Amelia. The emotion in this read is real and raw and MacAdam handled this sensitive, serious topic with grace. Well done.
The Sun and the Moon by Leslie McAdams was an interesting story that held my attention until the end. The main characters Amelia and Ryan had amazing chemistry despite being total opposites.
The author dealt with the sensitive topic of depression in an honest way and was also able to successfully portray the feelings of hope and optimism so as to have you rooting for the leading lady. With developed characters, amazing romance and and interesting storyline this was a good read.
This book was so good. It made you feel what the characters are going through. Loved it and would recommend this book.
Audiobook version:
Let me start by saying that this book had a fabulous narration. Tor and Charley are a fantastic listen. On the story side, i hate to say it but i had a really hard time connecting with this story. The stories were well written, i think i just failed to connect with the characters in a meaningful way. I would gladly try another book from this author though.
He saw her in high school. Knew she was the one. She didn’t know who he was when they ran into each other again, but the chemistry was undeniable. Can Ryan help her through her rules? Show her how to have fun again? A great and easy read.
I give this read 3.75 stars……
Bravo to Leslie McAdam for talking about depression and the attempt of suicide. And the struggles a person goes through to get through it. Or to learn to deal with it. This book was filled with inspiration and hope and lots and lots of sexiness.
I did struggle with Amelia’s character a little bit. She came across as self centered and looked down on Ryan. And I didn’t like that.
This was a journey of healing. And finding yourself and happiness again.
Swooning over the Sun God
I’m finally getting around to reading all of Leslie McAdam’s back catalogue and I’m so excited to be reading her Giving You series. Knowing this was her first series, that the coffee shop in this first book inspired the name of her Facebook author group … it’s like I’m getting to know a bit of Leslie history as well as getting to read some amazing books at the same time. The first book in this series, The Sun and The Moon, has just blown me away. I’m actually shocked this was Leslie’s debut novel as it does not read that way at all. Already her ability to create genuine, authentic and nuanced characters is finely tuned and I have fallen in love with both Amelia and Ryan, aka the Sun God.
What makes this a stand out story is Amelia. She is flawed, she lives with depression, she has a lot of inner demons (and rules regarding sex) to battle … and Ryan is willing to do his best to support her through it all. Amelia’s self criticism and her negative and questioning internal voices are something that – unfortunately – lots of people can relate to (me included) and I loved that Leslie has portrayed a heroine like this. The issues that arise in Amelia and Ryan’s relationship aren’t the usual big dramatic events (ie: past exes, surprise pregnancy, massive fight), they are problems that occur due to Amelia battling with assumptions she has made due to her last, assumptions she makes about Ryan and the first impressions she gathers as well as the fact that something positive is happening in her life and her brain isn’t ready to accept it … especially when it seems “to good to be true”.
After saying all that, The Sun and The Moon does provide a lot of laughs, some very very hot and steamy sex scenes and a story line that will resonate with a lot of people on some level I am sure. We all deserve a Sun God, but no one more so than Amelia. And I cannot wait to read the rest of this series
nicandbooks
Amazon/Goodreads
This is an amazing story about breaking self-imposed boundaries in order to find peace. It deals with the effects of depression and struggle to find acceptance of oneself. The story is well written, drawing me in from the beginning.
Amelia has rules, ten to be exact. Ten rules that create a safe boundary and also keeps anyone from finding their way into her heart. On top of the rules Amelia is suffering from the side effects of a depression medication. Although she’s seeing a therapist, her life won’t change unless she makes the effort. At a chance meeting at a coffee shop Amelia finds her Sun God, Ryan, behind the counter. Their chance meeting leads to a very sexy Alpha male hippie taking the reigns and leading Amelia slowly out of her shell. But will his sensual ways be enough to move her past her rules and insecurities?
I love this story. We discover Amelia after she’s moved past her dark place. She’s inspiring, how she knew she needed help and sought it. Now she’s working on moving forward past her rules and insecurities. I felt emotionally vested in her story, in her struggle. I love when a story makes me cry, smile and puts naughty thoughts in my head. This story does all that plus it left me feeling content. Thank you to the author for sharing Amelia’s story, it’s a reminder of our strength within us all. Life is what you make it, it’s the one rule I live by. 5++ Move Star Stars!
3.7 for me with this story, over all its a lovely read but there were moments that I was just irritated with Amelia when it came to her thoughts and actions. She is dealing with a serious condition of depression and when you learn what had cause it my heart just breaks into a million pieces. All these rules she’s set for any sexual opportunity were something else for sure but when Ryan comes into the picture and slowly tries to break those rules down the story started to get a bit more interesting for me. What I took from this story is that there’s so much more to someone then what meets the eye. It’s a well known fact but unfortunately not everyone can wrap their head around the fact. In the end I was smiling with the outcome and would recommend others to grab a copy and hear the story for themselves. This is my unbiased and voluntary review.
It was ok.
I really enjoyed this book!
Well written and paced. My only gripe was the typical the “Secret Billionaire” twist. It would have been so much more interesting if the hero had simply been a coffee shop chain, start up guy.
I look forward to reading other books by this author. I think she just needs to let go of all of the overdone formulas and trust her own creative instincts.
The perfect combo of realism and second chance romance. I loved the emotional journey of the h and the H was perfect in every way with helping her through it without unnecessary angst. The story has stayed with me well past the last page. This is the first book by this author that I’ve read and I will definitely read more.
Good read