{ARC Review+Interview+Giveaway} Paradise City by @CJ_Duggan @HachetteAus

There's bound to be trouble in Paradise . . .

When her parents decide a change will be good for her, seventeen-year-old Lexie Atkinson never expected they'd send her all the way to Paradise City. Coming from a predictable life of home schooling on a rural Australian property, she's sure that Paradise will be amazing. But when she's thrust into a public school without a friendly face in sight, and forced to share a room with her insipid, hateful cousin Amanda, Lexie's not so sure.

Hanging out with the self-proclaimed beach bums of the city, sneaking out, late night parties and parking with boys are all things Lexie's never experienced, but all that's about to change. It's new, terrifying . . . and exciting. But when she meets Luke Ballantine, exciting doesn't even come close to describing her new life. Trouble with a capital T, Luke is impulsive, charming and answers to no one. The resident bad-boy leader of the group, he's sexier than any boy Lexie has ever known.

Amidst the stolen moments of knowing looks and heated touches, Lexie can't help but wonder if Luke is going to be good for her . . . or very, very bad?

1. Describe Paradise City in a tweet (140 characters or less).

Paradise City is quintessentially Australian, heavily focused on family, friendships, love and pushing the limits. A sexy, sassy and witty character novel with plenty of twists and turns.

2. What are some traits that you look for in your book boyfriends?

There has to be an element of intrigue; discovering who they are is half the fun. Always love a character who can banter with a leading lady, and have amazing tension. Someone who is a strong, loyal male without being an Alpha jerk, because you know what? Sometimes the nice guy does get the girl.

3. What are some of your favourite trends in YA right now?

Dystopian, Paranormal, Contemp, Coming of Age: it all depends on my mood but I love them all and like to think that there is always something available for no matter what mood I am in, as long as there is a hint of romance. I adore a variety of YA.

4. Which of your characters has been the most fun to write and why?

I had an absolute blast writing Lexie’s story, mostly because I really didn’t know what would happen from one minute to the next. Just when I thought I had it figured out she would take me in a completely different direction; she definitely kept me on my toes and I loved that.

5. If we looked under your bed right now, what would we find?

Oh gosh, suitcases, books, books and more books. No doubt a few writing pads with stories that should not and will not see the light of day, so please don’t look under there.

I love C.J. Duggan’s books. She can write the heck out of New Adult contemporary romances. As an author on my auto-buy list, I was super excited to be a part of the Paradise City blog tour. Paradise City is the first book in C.J.’s Paradise series, which is a new adult contemporary romance series. Even though the main character is in high school, this had more of a new adult feel to it. Maybe younger new adult or a ya/na crossover. It is a little different than her Summer Boys series, in that each book does not work as a standalone. Here, you will need to read the series in order. And here, there is a cliffhanger. It caught me off guard because I have never experienced a cliffhanger in any of C.J. Duggan’s other books, so I wasn’t expecting it at all. And it is quite the cliffhanger, at that.

Cliffhanger aside, Paradise City is the same brand of feel good, fun and sexy romance that I have come to love from this author. I can’t wait for the next book in the series already. Lexie grew up home schooled in a tiny Australian town. She is super smart, and for her 11th grade year in high school, her parents have finally agreed to let her move in with her aunt and cousin in the bigger town of Paradise. Lexie was so adorably excited about moving and going to a real high school. She was like a kid in the candy store when she got to Paradise. I loved it. She wanted ALL THE TEENAGE EXPERIENCES. And any good reader of new adult knows that means teenage romance.

I loved the way the students at school were divided into one of three different houses. I have no idea if that is how it is actually done in high school in Australia, but I would like to imagine that it is. Lexie totally got the best house too- Gilmore. (Gave me a total Gilmore Girls flashback) That is the house for the smart kids. The house for the beach bums, or cool kids was Kirkland, and that is where Boon and Luke and some of Lexie’s cousin’s friends are in. I knew right off the rat that most of the action was going to come from Lexie’s interaction with this crowd. It took me a couple of minutes before I could get a read on Luke as a love interest, but once I did, I really enjoyed his interactions with Lexie.

Paradise City is a great romance with a great main character. I loved Lexie. A lot, a lot. And I liked the whole group of secondary characters as well. I am looking forward to seeing more of them in the next book, and getting to know them a little bit better. If you loved C.J. Duggan’s Summer series, you should give Paradise City a try! And if you are new to C.J. Duggan’s books, you need to get in the loop and grab all of her books. You will become addicted.

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