Stories and Swag!: Blog Tour: An Exceptional Twist by Kimi Flores

Title: An Exceptional Twist (Intertwined Hearts #2)

Author: Kimi Flores

Hosted By: The Book Avenue

What’s a girl to do when the one person she’s been forewarned about is the only one that her heart desires?

Leah Valdez is a sassy, intelligent, hard-working woman whose beauty shines from both inside and out. Friends and family have always come first, but it's time for her to start thinking about her own future.

Stefen Hunter is a rich, charming, sexy playboy. With seemingly no effort on his part, countless women flock to him. That is, until he meets Leah. He can’t understand why it’s so difficult to win her over or what it is about her that intrigues him so much.

When an unfortunate event intertwines their lives, Leah finds herself in a war between her thoughts and desires. To forgive, and ultimately trust, Stefen, she will have to put her heart on the line. After what he’s put her through, she’s not sure she’s willing to do that.

As compassion meets resistance, will Stefen be able to step out of his comfort zone and accept that he can become the redeemed man worthy of Leah’s love? Is Stefen and Leah’s connection strong enough to withstand An Exceptional Twist?

Elle says...

An Exceptional Twist is another stellar romance and the second book in Kimi Flores’ Intertwined Hearts Series. Kimi’s sophomore novel follows Leah Valdez and Stefen Hunter, characters I met and was intrigued by in It All Started With a Lima Bean. If you haven’t read the first book, you must read it before diving into An Exceptional Twist, otherwise you’ll be lost.

Leah is the opposite of her best friend, Abby Sullivan. Our heroine is outspoken and sassy yet has a vulnerable side underneath those layers of Latin flare. Stefen is a player who goes through women faster than pairs of underwear. While his cousin, Caleb, grew up and out of this playboy mentality, Stefen has yet to extend beyond his womanizing ways. I love how different both lead characters are from the leads in Lima Bean. They are edgier and from their mutual stubbornness a more passionate, volatile connection between Stefen and Leah is developed. Tempers flare and romance ignites as opposites attract.

As with Lima Bean, this novel overall is a light-hearted story about following your heart and learning to let love heal the broken parts of you. Each character carries baggage from their past. Leah has a history of never being adequate enough for the men she has dated. Stefen has fought his entire life to exceed the impossible standards set by his parents. His attitude towards women is his way of maintaining some semblance of control in a life that was determined long before he was born. I was invested in these characters and the plot from the beginning, and thoroughly enjoyed the journey from start to finish. There’s an abundance of romance and sparks and even a few unexpected plot twists that left me in shock.

Kimi Flores has dialed up the heat and delivered another spectacular read with her second novel, An Exceptional Twist. This is the kind of story (and series) that is versatile and able to be enjoyed by all readers regardless of their genre preferences. One-click Stefen and Leah’s story today.

Kimi grew up in the San Gabriel Valley (mostly Alhambra) and still lives in Southern California. She’s been married to her high-school sweetheart and prom date for 21 years and they have two hilarious boys.

When she’s not reading or writing, Kimi spends her time in the kitchen trying to come up with vegan meals that don’t taste like cardboard. Her family might disagree with this however.

Although she doesn’t loyally follow or have favorite teams/athletes, Kimi loves a good hockey game or motorcross/x-treme sports event.

Volunteering is extremely important to her and she and her family work with several local non-profit organizations. A portion of her sales will always go to charity.

She’s planning on publishing the last two books in this series by the end of the year. Book 3, Grafted Vines, is Dani & Zachary’s story and book 4, Tangled Paths, is Bri & Josh’s journey. And because every character has a story to tell, there’s a possibility of a novella about Stefen and Bri’s mother’s life. There’s a reason she acts the way she does and she may bug Kimi enough to have it written out.