{"id":6343,"date":"2016-09-15T00:33:20","date_gmt":"2016-09-15T00:33:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allthethingsinbetween.net\/?p=6343"},"modified":"2019-04-05T21:06:12","modified_gmt":"2019-04-05T21:06:12","slug":"weekend-pick-me-up-anti-stepbrother-by-tijan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2016\/09\/15\/weekend-pick-me-up-anti-stepbrother-by-tijan\/","title":{"rendered":"Weekend Pick Me Up: Anti-Stepbrother by Tijan"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n<\/p>\n

I was starting to go off Tijan after having followed her from back when her books had pencil designed covers. The first book I read of hers, and still my most favorite, was Brady Remington Landed Me In Jail <\/span>because<\/span><\/i> it stands out from her normal plot devices. <\/span><\/p>\n

Happily the beautiful spirit of Brady Remington has been resurrected by Anti-Stepbrother.<\/p>\n

Tijan\u2019s fandom is venomous and I will no doubt earn major animosity when I say that the recycled characters and overused plots have me sleepy as hell.<\/p>\n

I really <\/span>do<\/b> love reading Tijan books mainly due to her great sense of tension and layers. The fact remains, her storytelling hasn\u2019t grown: Broken and Screwed series, Fallen Crest books, and Jaded saga are evidence of that. <\/span>A girl is treated shitty by her friends\/non-present family, she is broken in too many ways to function or fight back. She ties herself to the more aggressive predators in the school or city, finds a new \u201cfamily\u201d, and they circle the wagons to keep her protected–often falling–but in the end she becomes Queen Buttercup and all is well.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Even when Tijan expanded to Carter Reed, Kian, Fighter, and A New Crowd the formulaic plot vehicle was active–and growing boring. Stretching herself outside her creative writing box wasn\u2019t happening; that saddens me because she is so skillful in character development. Dimension and background of her storycrafting is solid and tarnished by her recycling.<\/p>\n

But then there is this!<\/p>\n

Anti-Stepbrother is my new book crush. I mean book I am crushing on, not Caden being my crush. <\/span><\/p>\n

–Though he is worthy of being a book boyfriend.<\/span><\/p>\n

Anti-Stepbrother is wonderful. It\u2019s an enjoyable anomaly in the Tijan library. Ripe with fantastic layering, emotional trauma introduction, with coping and non-coping aspects, this is prime character psyche and maturation at it\u2019s best. Tijan tests her characters to feel intense emotions from dark sources: grief. PTSD, delusions, anxiety, abuse, and trauma, she always manages to instill a challenge internally as well as externally for the cast of her books.<\/span><\/p>\n

…and this book has that happening without the familiar hook. Thumbs up! <\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>Caden and Summer are two amazingly handled characters. They are unique and loveable from the very start to the last word. Anti-Stepbrother, as far as originality goes, is stunning for not carrying over any of the crutch framework of her previous novels. <\/span><\/p>\n

Summer Stoltz: new adult seeing the world, her crush, and her family with new eyes, revealing that there are undercurrents there that she was unable to understand. \u00a0As if the veil has been lifted she struggles to acknowledge that the fairy tale she has thought her life to be is little more than a facade. With awareness comes the realization that she has been manipulated by the person she wanted most to love her.<\/span><\/p>\n

Suddenly Kevin–her step brother, isn\u2019t Prince Charming. In fact he is a skeevy pathological liar in the habit of using girls, LOTS of girls. Her crush on her step sibling leads to amatuer stalking and an introduction to Caden Banks. <\/span><\/p>\n

Caden is a big deal with a lot of responsibility. He sees Summer as refreshing after years of superficial friendships. Summer and Caden AGAINST THE WORLD!<\/span><\/p>\n

Caden isn\u2019t epic in the way Logan and Mason Kade are. He\u2019s not in a crazy war with another class of people who try to kill anyone. He\u2019s not fighting off a serial killer. Not a mob killer with connections. And he\u2019s not dragging bodies across campus to show his cred. <\/span><\/p>\n

This dude is someone anyone could meet; any girl could be so lucky to find this breed of male. Thank the lord for that because I can not take one more guy that can drink a 12 pack in 20 minutes and be clear minded enough to fight with any skill. And Summer doesn\u2019t run 30 miles a day like an endurance athlete on crack. <\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s be honest, does anyone think Sam has the strength to get boney with Mason after running daily marathons? \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Anti-Stepbrother doesn\u2019t read like a bunch of fisherman stories regarding fighting, fucking, and getting shit faced. I love this book for that.<\/span><\/p>\n

The one thing that Tijan is phenomenal at doing in all her books is balancing a large number of key characters without losing focus on her hero and heroine and she\u2019s still aces here. I recommend this book to you if you want the best of Tijan. <\/span><\/p>\n

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Recommendations Based on This Read:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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\"antistepbrother\"Anti-Stepbrother Blurb:<\/strong><\/p>\n

He told me to ‘settle, girl.’<\/em>
\n He asked if ‘something was wrong with me?’<\/em>
\n He said I was an \u2018easy target.\u2019
\n<\/em>That was within minutes when I first met Caden Banks.<\/p>\n

I labeled him an *sshole, but he was more than that. Arrogant. Smug. Alpha.<\/p>\n

He was also to-die-for gorgeous, and my stepbrother\u2019s fraternity brother.<\/p>\n

Okay, yes I was a little naive, a tad bit socially awkward, and the smallest amount of stalker-ish, but if Caden Banks thought he could tell me what to do, he had another thing coming.<\/p>\n

I came to college with daydreams about being with my stepbrother, but what if I fell for the anti-stepbrother instead?<\/p>\n

Standalone.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"goodreads-green\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Purchase Anti-Stepbrother:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Amazon-US<\/a> | Amazon-CA<\/a> | Amazon-UK<\/a> | Amazon-AU<\/a> |\u00a0B&N<\/a> | iTunes<\/a> | Kobo<\/a><\/p>\n

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Tijan’s Books:<\/p>\n

Immortal Prophecy Series:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

Jaded Series:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

Fallen Crest Series:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

Broken and Screwed Series:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

Carter Reed Series:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

A Whole New Crowd:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

Standalone:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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Anti-Stepbrother Excerpt:<\/p>\n

The sun shone into the room, and it took me a few moments to realize where I was. I didn\u2019t recognize the king-size bed, or the black sheets, but then Caden walked past the open door and all the memories flooded into place.<\/p>\n

I slept at his place.<\/p>\n

I glanced around the bed\u2026 I slept in his bed!<\/p>\n

\u201cYour alarm\u2019s about to go off in ten minutes,\u201d Caden called from the doorway. He had a cup of coffee in hand and wore only jeans.<\/p>\n

I tried to keep my eyes front and center, but I lost. The tattoos were a nice little zig-zag pattern, pulling my gaze down, all the way down. Caden\u2019s slow, smooth chuckle told me he knew what I\u2019d just done. My cheeks only warmed a little.<\/p>\n

I shot him a look, falling back to the pillow. \u201cI feel like this should be the first skip day of my school career.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve never skipped before?\u201d<\/p>\n

I shook my head, rolling it side to side on the pillow. \u201cAm I missing out? Should I embrace my inner deviant?\u201d<\/p>\n

He smirked. \u201cYou can skip a class for any reason in the world. It\u2019s your life.\u201d<\/p>\n

I sat up, eyeing that coffee. \u201cYou were supposed to be the bad influence.\u201d<\/p>\n

His eyebrow lifted. \u201cI\u2019m not selling it enough?\u201d He lifted his cup. \u201cYou want some coffee?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m wondering if today is the day I try coffee too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve never had coffee?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m beginning to think I\u2019m lame.\u201d I thought about it. \u201cReally lame.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou slept at some guy\u2019s house last night. Think of it that way.\u201d His smirk was back. \u201cNot so lame now.\u201d<\/p>\n

I could do one better. \u201cI slept at a fraternity house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd you drank beer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the second night in a row that I drank beer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSee? Not so lame after all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re right.\u201d I sat up. \u201cI\u2019m halfway to total badass.\u201d<\/p>\n

He grinned. \u201cWe cuddled last night, and you could think of it as dry humping. You almost got some last night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Except I hadn\u2019t, and we were in the friend zone. Why were my hands curling around the covers into tight balls? I glanced down and forced them to loosen, then shrugged, trying to be the nonchalant badass I was.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou carried me to bed. Almost the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Suddenly, the joking was gone, and his eyes burned. I could feel his heat from across the room, and my body reacted, instantly warming even before he said a word.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing\u2019s the same as sliding inside,\u201d he murmured after a moment. \u201cThe feel of being in there, feeling that clench around you, knowing you can push as deep as you want, as hard or gently as you want. Nope. I\u2019ve gotta step off the joke train for a moment here. Nothing is remotely the same as that feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fuck. My pulse spiked.<\/p>\n

He tossed me a look. \u201cMaybe I\u2019ll cop a feel the next time.\u201d<\/p>\n

I pretended to groan. \u201cOne more notch on my badass peg. You better cop a feel next time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that all I am to you? A notch on the bedpost? I feel so used, Stoltz.\u201d<\/p>\n

Okay. My last name. We were back on familiar ground here. But my grin was still a little shaky.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet used to it, Banks. I\u2019m only disguised as this plain Jane. Inside there\u2019s a wild woman just waiting to be let loose.\u201d<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t reply.<\/p>\n

He stared at me for a few more seconds, then straightened from the doorway. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing plain about you, Summer.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Meet Tijan:<\/p>\n

Tijan is a New York Times Bestselling author that writes suspenseful and unpredictable novels. Her characters are strong, intense, and gut-wrenchingly real with a little bit of sass on the side. Tijan began writing later in life and once she started, she was hooked. She\u2019s written multi-bestsellers including the Carter Reed Series, the Fallen Crest Series, and the Broken and Screwed Series among others. She is currently writing Fallen Crest Six (untitled) along with so many more from north Minnesota where she lives with a man she couldn\u2019t be without and an English Cocker she adores.<\/p>\n

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Tijan’s Web Tracks:<\/p>\n

Website<\/a> | Facebook<\/a> | Twitter<\/a> | Instagram<\/a> | Goodreads<\/a> | Amazon Follow<\/a> | Pinterest<\/a>\u00a0| WattPad<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Untitled-3\"\"facebook\"<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6344,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[3],"tags":[117,1977],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Anti-Stepbrother-Header.jpg?fit=700%2C400&ssl=1","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4617,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2014\/12\/04\/book-it-in-news-today-tijans-franchise-stop-i-know-kinda-makes-me-wanna-get-off-after-reading-each-stop-too\/","url_meta":{"origin":6343,"position":0},"title":"Book It - In News Today: Tijan's Franchise Stop! (I know... kinda makes me wanna get off after reading each stop, too...)","date":"2014-12-04","format":false,"excerpt":"This is an episodic blog tour and the parts have to be read in order please be sure to follow along all links are below: Tijan Franchise Part 1 - Confessions of a Y.A. & N.A. Book Addict Tijan Franchise Part 2 - Midwest Book Lover Tijan Franchise Part 3\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/Tijan-Franchise.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7141,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2019\/09\/12\/interviews-tijan-and-wolf-crew-chat\/","url_meta":{"origin":6343,"position":1},"title":"Interviews: Tijan and Wolf Crew Chat","date":"2019-09-12","format":false,"excerpt":"Share or Pin this image for extra entry giveaways! Ali: Hey guys. Are you all excited about Crew Princess, the next book in your story? Tijan and Crew: Of course! Hopefully. We'll see. :) Ali: Tijan do these characters behave when you are writing them or do they take your\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"Crew Princess by Tijan","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Crew-Chat-Banner.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5220,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2015\/04\/28\/book-it-carter-reed-2-is-in-the-building\/","url_meta":{"origin":6343,"position":2},"title":"Book It: Carter Reed 2 Is In The Building","date":"2015-04-28","format":false,"excerpt":"The long awaited Carter Reed 2 has just been released by Tijan and it\u2019s crawling up the Amazon Seller charts like she is selling chocolate. This novel continues the love story of crime syndicate leader Carter Reed and his love kitten Emma Martins as they burn the world down. In\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Giveaways"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/carter_reed_4.jpg?fit=960%2C960&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3908,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2014\/08\/28\/book-it-in-news-today-tijan-gives-fallen-fourth-down-teaser\/","url_meta":{"origin":6343,"position":3},"title":"Book It - In News Today: Tijan Gives FALLEN FOURTH DOWN TEASER!","date":"2014-08-28","format":false,"excerpt":"On August 20th Tijan posted the following message and teaser to her Tijan Books Facebook account announcing that Fallen Fourth Down was in fact just around the corner and would be ready for release in September. This is the fourth Fallen Crest Series Episodic however Tijan has many \"extras\" she\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/Teaser-Banner.jpg?fit=675%2C250&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10590,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/08\/31\/new-release-always-crew-by-tijan\/","url_meta":{"origin":6343,"position":4},"title":"New Release: Always Crew by Tijan","date":"2020-08-31","format":false,"excerpt":"Always Crew by Tijan Title: Always Crew (Crew #3)Author: TijanGenre: New Adult RomanceRelease Date: 25 August 2020 Always Crew, the all-new emotional and angsty finale of the Crew series by New York Times bestselling author Tijan is available now!\u00a0 For the longest time, I was Bren Monroe.\u00a0I lived in Roussou,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Blitz"","img":{"alt_text":"Always Crew by Tijan","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Always-Crew-BT-banner.png?fit=1200%2C443&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7188,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2019\/08\/29\/hcnbtijangiveaway\/","url_meta":{"origin":6343,"position":5},"title":"Giveaway: Tijan Ultimate Giveaway","date":"2019-08-29","format":false,"excerpt":"Share and Pin this image! The Ultimate Tijan Giveaway August 30, 2019 - September 30, 2019bit.ly\/HCNBTijanGiveaway | #HCNBTijanGiveaway Tijanettes and Tijan Crew members it\u2019s Tijan Time on Have Coffee Need Books and I know you want in on this contest. It\u2019s your chance to win awesome Tijan prizes epic proportions!\u00a0\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"Tijan Ultimate Giveaway","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/HCNBUltimateTijan.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6343"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6343"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6343\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6646,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6343\/revisions\/6646"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6344"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}