S. Walden

Cadence Miller is a good girl. She just happens to make one terrible mistake her junior year in high school which costs her ten months in juvenile detention. Now a senior, she's lost everything: her best friend, the trust of her parents, driving privileges, Internet access. It's a lonely existence. But there is one bright spot: Mark Connelly, her very cute, very off-limits 28-year-old calculus teacher. She falls hard for him-a ridiculous schoolgirl crush headed nowhere. She can't help it. He's the only good thing at Crestview High. She doesn't expect him to reciprocate her feelings. How inappropriate, right? But he does. And he shows her. And that's when her life goes from bad to good. (New Adult Contemporary Romance/Book 1 in the Too Good series)

Good

Anna Ureta

Let me start off by saying I DID NOT EXPECT THAT AT ALL – wait that sounds familiar have I used that already? Okay let’s try another one… HOLY FREAKING AMAZEBALLS THAT WAS HOT! There we go! That’s new. I love how the cover and title don’t give anything away of what the story is or how intense it actually is. Let me just say that S. Walden completely and utterly blew me out of the water. This was definitely a book I could finish in one sitting, if I had the kind of time to read a book in one sitting.
 
Cadence Miller is a seventeen year old high school junior. She’s Christian. She knows the difference between right and wrong. But like all humans she sometimes makes mistakes. One mistake one time that cost her ten months in juvenile detention. Now that she’s out she’s lost everything, from her parents’ trust, driving privileges, even her best friend.
 
Starting a new school year was rather daunting for her, until she meets her new and hot calculus teacher Mark Connelly. Cadence starts falling for him HARD even though she knows her math teacher is completely and utterly off-limits. You can’t help how you feel even if you think your feelings are going no where. But what happens when Mark starts to reciprocate her feelings? How are they going to make the relationship work? How are they going to get by without anyone noticing? Despite everything, Mark is the one good thing that has come out of her mundane and lonely existance, and Cadence is determined to make it work.
 
Cadence Miller (you know how long it took me to figure out how to pronounce her name… I kept saying Candece and for the life of me I don’t know why!) is pretty freaking bad-ass. For a seventeen year old out of juvie re-entering high school she’s got a good head on her shoulders. She knows how to hold her head high, knows how to get through high school without showing weakness, and after everything she’s been through she’s determined not to let her fellow classmates bother her about her experience. I for one think that takes exceptional will power and courage to stand up and ignore the awful things being said about her.
 
Cadence isn’t stupid either. She realizes her feelings for her math teacher Mr. Connelly, acknowledges them, but being raised as a good Christian she knows it’s wrong to like him. I mean how would you feel if you had a crush on one of your teachers? Raised Christian or not! Pretty freaking awkward and silly I think. But as I’ve said, sometimes you just can’t help who you like.
 

“I read the note five times. And each time, I convinced myself a little more that Mr. Connelly was the man I was going to marry. It was ludicrous and immature, and I clung to the fantasy as long as I could until the first period bell rang, screaming at me to get to class.”
 
The interaction between the two is just so freaking adorable. Still, it makes me wonder how their relationship would play
 
out in real life. I’ve never witnessed a student x teacher relationship before. Especially a high school student dating her teacher, so I can’t really say I have an opinion on it. I have, however, always be curious and always wondered… It’s wrong, and immoral but…SO CUTE…and SEXY.
 
(NOTE: I have nothing against Student x Teacher relationships IRL. What you do is your business and I’m not one to judge. Please don’t be offended if you know someone or have been in a student x teacher relationship, I mean no offence. I say ‘wrong’ and ‘immoral’ only because it’s TECHNICALLY against the law. What you do behind closed doors is your business as long as it’s consensual. If not…then it’s considered rape.)
 
These two are so NAUGHTY and dirty it’s freaking adorable. Like I could die…from the cuteness. Why can’t I have that? The way they tease each other, oh MAN does it make my heart beat faster! And remember this girl is barely eighteen. She has her innocence which makes it even more interesting and exciting at the same time.
 

“Come here,” he said. I walked over to stand in front of him.
 “You’ve been very naughty, you know.”
 My heartbeat sped up.
 “You showed me your little pink panties in class when you know I can’t do a thing about it.”
 I can’t breathe.
 “I think you need a spanking, Cadence. For being such a bad girl.”
 “Mr. Connelly!”
 He chuckled. “Well, what will you give me then? You were naughty. I can’t just let you walk out of here unpunished.”
 
I can’t express…how much I LOVE the raw passion and emotion between Cadence and Mark. It’s uncanny. It’s all perfectly logical when you think about how they react to each other. People want to be loved and accepted by their loved ones, mentally, phyisically and emotionally. And I think that’s something a lot of people forget. It’s not enough to just want someone on one or two of the levels, you need to be completely there when you’re with that person.
 

“I’m going crazy!” he said. “I can’t eat. I can’t sleep. I can’t concentrate on work. I don’t like it, Cadence. Not any of it. I’m losing it.”
 
Despite all the love, and cuteness about them, there were parts of the story I found very awe inspiring and true to the word. I love those little tidbits in books that move you, that touch you with a simple realization that for some reason you never saw before. I love Walden’s ability to be deep and serious, but to also turn the heat on! It’s an amazing gift that she shares with us very well in this novel.
 

“Do you think love is a choice or a feeling?”
 “That’s a peculiar question,” she said. “Are you in love with someone?”
 “I don’t know yet. That’s why I’m asking you,” I replied.
 “All right then. I think love is both,” she said.
 
What you can take away from this novel is the INTENSITY. And the cliffhanger that makes you want to rip your eyes out! Okay it’s not that bad of a cliffhanger but I want more!!! I need more! and I want it NOW!!! I need to see where this is going! I NEED CADENCE AND MARK TO BE TOGETHER! This couple is just so HIGHLY ADDICTIVE! Good thing this book is BOOK 1 of the TOO GOOD series. I can’t wait for the next book!
 
5/5 Hearts of Love

Read the rest of my reviews at http://www.akiikomorireading.wordpres...

Vesselina

Tayla 

I REALLY liked this book. I loved the characters so much. I wanted to be Cadence's best friends and god did I want a piece of Mr. Connelly. Hello hot math teacher. ;) This book was such a fast read I can't even begin to emphasize it. I didn't sleep. I think that sums it up perfectly. I had bags under my eyes and I didn't care cause I loved the book so much and I just needed "one more chapter". The development is sound and I loved that it was told in first person. Great book overall.

Samantha 

4.5 Stars

Omg!!!! Forbidden love and lust! I love it!! 

So much drama and so entertaining! Can't wait until the next book.

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  kimberlyfaye reads
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This book made me uncomfortable. I'm not even going to lie. This isn't the first teacher/student romance that I've read, but it's the first one that affected me this way. I think the biggest difference between this book and the others I've read is that this one is NA, not YA, thus the scenes and dialogue is far more explicit. But the discomfort it caused me is exactly why I rated this book four stars. It pushed me outside of my comfort zone and that's something I need every now and then. I'm filing this one under "books I couldn't help but enjoy, even though they're 'wrong' or taboo."

Mark wasn't the typical, conflicted teacher who fell for his student. There was something dirtier about him. The things he said made me cringe at times. I don't doubt that he had real feelings for Cadence, but I still don't know what his true motivation was. Was he a nice guy who just happened to fall for a student or was there something more predatory at work? Their relationship and sexual exploits were absolutely consensual, but it did make me uncomfortable at times. There was a definite dominating edge to his character and his treatment of Cadence.

Cadence was immature. I don't know that I can honestly say that I liked her. I think she went into this entire situation thinking it was a big game, a way to rebel against her strict upbringing. I truly believe she had real feelings for him too. I have a hard time believing that she really was as innocent and naive as she was portrayed. She just seemed utterly clueless about all things sex. I think that's also part of what caused me to be uncomfortable with some of their encounters. 

Generally speaking, I have to connect with characters to enjoy a book as much as I did this one. Each of these characters were flawed and I feel like I never fully connected with either of them. I grew to appreciate things about them as the story continued, but I can't really say that I honestly liked either of them. Did I love this book? No. Did I enjoy it? Absolutely. Am I anxiously awaiting the sequel? Oh yes. I can't wait to get inside Mark's head. I desperately need to understand more about him, his history and his motivation. 

What I will say, without reservation, is that Summer Walden is an incredible writer. This is the second of her books that I've read. Her writing is exceptional. Her stories and characters are interesting and have an edge. She isn't afraid to push the boundaries and "go there" and that's one of the things I appreciate most about her writing. Her books make me think. They make me question right and wrong and any preconceived notions I may have had. I can't ask for much more than that.

Good

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