About Us

     Recently, the Swooning Over Books family has grown. While I (Jenn) am the founder, and the brain's behind this blog (Ha! Jess is going to love that!) I was finally able to rope in my sister, Jess, into the world of book blogging!  We both have an obsession for reading and talk about the books we are reading ALL the time.  It only makes since that we should do this together.  :)


About Jenn
     About me, huh?  Where do I begin?  I am a full time wife and soccer mom with a full time job that has an obsession for reading.  My husband and I have been together almost half my life.  Half. My. Life.  And I only recently hit the dreaded 3-O.  How the hell did that happen?  My darling husband's name is synonymous with romance novels.  I will not spell it out for you.  I am sure you can figure it out.  That said, I wonder why he is shocked that I am obsessed with the same stories he was named after.  My husband is my Kellen Kyle and my Travis Maddox.  He is my Jack Henry and my Gavin Blake.  On occasion he is my Jesse, Remy and Christian as well.  (If he happens to read this - hunny it is OK that you don't have any idea what I'm talking about.  It's OK.  I still love you.)

     Together we have two amazing children.  They are my legacy and I only hope I do right by them.  Both of them have developed a love for reading and have begun to do a little creative writing of their own.  Watch out all you authors out there.  Pretty soon you will have some stiff competition.  ;)

    I have always had a love for writing.  When I was in High School I always had a notebook within arms reach.  Tucked in my purse, my glove box, my locker, or under my pillow there was always one nearby.  Writing was the one way I could freely expression my thoughts and feelings.  I would pour myself into each word filling page after page.  I still have them all, neatly stored on a bookshelf.

     Somewhere along the line between college, work, marriage and children I lost touch with the writer within.  Now and then I would dabble a little, but I could never find the time.  I still can't.  I envy every single author who is able to complete what they have started.  Whether anyone likes it or not I applaud you for finishing.  Occasionally the characters that live in my subconscious come knocking, asking me to come out and play, and maybe someday I will, but for now I will leave that to the professionals.

     While I have always loved writing, reading was a completely different story.  As a child I struggled with reading.  I almost stayed back a grade in elementary school because of it.  A multitude of negative experiences scarred my adolescence and it took a long time to overcome it.  Even to this day I do not like to read out loud in front of people.  I am not shy by any means.  Public speaking, presentations, meetings - no problem.  Reading something word for word off a sheet of paper... terrifying. 

     My outlook on reading was changed all thanks to one Mr. Christian Grey.  Or maybe it was is Edward Cullen.  Either way it was November (2012) and the last movie in the Twilight series was about to be released in theaters.  My sister and I talked about the finale for weeks.  I thought my husband was going to strangle me if he had to hear about it one more time.  (This is an urge, thankfully, has lessen over time.  Now when I talk about a character as if they are the next door neighbor he just smiles and nods.)  During opening weekend of Twilight I dragged Mr. Fabulous to the movies to see the conclusion of a great love story (don't let him fool you he loved it) and then it happened.  The unthinkable.  It ended.  It was over.  Done.  Finished.  Kaput.  What was I going to do with myself?  I need something to fill that void.

     Enter Fifty Shades of Grey.  The FSoG craze was beginning to wan by this time, but my mother had just finished reading the trilogy and insisted on filing me in on some of the details.  Let me stop here and say if I never hear my mother use the words "riding crop" and "tie up" in the same sentence again it will be too soon.  I mean seriously Mom, give me a break here.  Eww!  Anyways, I began reading FSoG and finished all three books in three days.  Yes, that's right, THREE DAYS.  I read every chance I got.  I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning to finish the next chapter.  I woke up early to pickup where I felt off before work.  I loved it.  I loved every chapter.  Every paragraph.  Every word.  

     It sparked something inside and when it was over I was sad, but I was on to find my next fix.  Book after book I devoured them.  A few weeks later and I came across This Man by Jodi Ellen Malpas.  Swoon.  I fell in love with Jesse.  It quickly became one of my most favorite books, but everyone I spoke to hadn't heard of this novel.  Fear not, by the time I was done they were 1-clicking away.  Jodi Ellen Malpas was the first author I ever looked up on Facebook.  I began reading her post and was taken back by her humility.  She was genuinely humbled by the attention she was receiving.  This melted the misconceived notion I had about authors.  It was the first real look I took at the indie author.  The average person with a story to tell.  It was a wonderful experience.

     By following Jodi I began to see constant references to theSUBCLUBbooks.  I was curious.  Before I knew it I was checking out their Facebook page and poking around on their blog.  If you have never checked out "the girls" I strongly recommend it.  They are like rockstars in my eyes.  If any of them ever came across my little ol' blog I might pass out.  The reviews and interviews they write are amazing.  For weeks every book on my to be read came from them.

     TheSUBCLUBbooks lead to another blog and which lead to yet another. Soon my entire Facebook news feed was nothing but blog and author posts.  It was amazing to discover an entire community of people who loved the same stories I did.  I continued chugging through novels left and right.  My 'to be read' list was almost as long as my 'read' list (still is).  I began giving recommendations to my family and friends.  I would simply ask what kind of story they wanted and drop the names of a few titles.

     Deciding to start a blog was a way that I could combined my new found love for reading with my smoldering love of writing.  A place where I could put those recommendations on paper.  It allows me an avenue to let out a little literary energy, until I get the guts to try something more.

     To my fellow readers, I hope you enjoy the reviews you find here.  I hope that they lead you to some amazing stories and to some amazing authors.  To the authors out there, you are all amazing.  I envy the courage it takes to put your heart out there for the world to see.  Bravo.  

Happy reading!!

About Jess

Well let’s see… what I could possibly say… I am the baby sister, the youngest, the “favorite”.  Regardless of what my sister says, being the baby isn’t always easy; living in shadow of my big sister was sometimes rough growing up.  One memory I have was our Great-Grandfather telling me to “keep my nose in the book like Jenn”, little did he know I struggled through school even at that young age.  She always seems to have life figured out, but we are extremely close and I couldn’t ask for a better big sister J 

          Although recently married, my husband and I have been together for... FOREVER... haha seriously though, since I was 16!!  Can you believe that?!  He has been my rock through some of the toughest times in life, but has this wonderful charm to him that will always put a smile on anyone’s face.  My nieces are my entire world.  I love watching them grow into mini versions of my sister, although I do try to influence a little (or a lot) of “Auntie” in there! (Shhh don’t tell Jenn that)
           Growing up, I absolutely hated to read.  I really don’t know what it was, maybe the fact of being forced to read, or maybe just the genre.  Not unlike my sister, I still to this day cannot read out loud, not even to Mr. Wonderful.  You can definitely say that I am the shy one out of the family.  However, while my sister may have “gotten the brains”, I got the looks out of the deal (LOVE YOU JENN).
          I became utterly obsessed with Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, even learned to play “Bella’s Lullaby” on the piano.  I’m pretty sure my husband wanted to strangle me at the time. Who am I kidding; I still make him watch it every time it is on TV.  My sister in law told me that I HAD to read Fifty Shades of Grey, even though the hype was pretty much over.  HOLY COW!!  If only I had been able to read this in school, maybe I would have paid more attention!!
          My sister and I were constantly sharing books and many still hold a special place in my heart.  I have even converted a close friend into being an avid reader with us!  Books literally became our obsession; we will sit for hours and talk about the characters, as if they are going to walk through the door any minute.  Try having these conversations in front of your father!!  “So then he took out this crop…”, “Can you believe he said that to her?!”  LOL Daydreaming about the D-Bags, Jesse at the Manor, or even sparkly vampires.
          When my sister first told me she created this blog, I thought that I had officially created a monster.  I’m sure Mr. Fabulous must love me for this!  But, I am very happy to have been brought to the dark side.  Nothing makes my day better than hearing how an author loved our review or their appreciation for helping them “Pimp their book”.  I have a new found love for these authors especially the Indie Authors, who want nothing more than a chance to share their worlds with new readers.
          We love being the one to get these books out to readers and giving honestly reviews.  There is no better feeling than introducing readers to their new love for reading and favorite authors.  Although our husbands may think we are nuts or maybe even a little jealous of the latest “book boyfriend” their support means the world to us.  I can’t wait to continue this new little chapter of our lives with the rest of you.
          I would love to hear your suggestion on what you would like to see here on the blog, Facebook or Twitter. Please contact us, I would personally love to help you all find that "perfect book".