ALL LINED UP (Rusk University, 1) Paperback – April 22, 2014

“I can’t walk away from you because I don’t want to. There are a thousand things I want and need to do, but you trump all of them. You drive me to distraction, and all I want to do is get lost in you . All I want to do is make you lose it, too. “It took me long enough to read this! Well, actually it took me long enough to get around to reading this. Once I finally found a moment to read, I did so in one sitting.And let me tell you, Carmack did it again. Well, actually no that’s not quite right, she out done all her previous works. This is by far my favorite of her books.&nbspThe story line has Carmack written all over it. So if you like her books- you going to love this one. But somehow, while the focus is on obviously on the romance, there are many threads binding this one together. So what at first glance looks like your really well written cute and fluffy, turn out to have way more depth to it than one first realises. Only while writing this review I am slowly grasping how much has been packed into this. Carmack brought the love of dance and football, the relationship between father and daughter, and last but not least Texas into this one. It’s less angsty then her previous books, more subtle but just as much character driven as all her worksThe only critic I would have is that some of the tensions just conveniently went away or ended up being a non-issue. But then again, I probably would have complained, that there was too much drama if Carmack would have taken a different route.You know what a sucker I am for great characters! And in this one, I actually loved every single character. In fact, I love them so much that I am hoping that Carmack is going to to a book for most of the support characters... Torres, Ryan, even Coach Oz.Dallas was easy to relate to. Her difficulties, her ambitions and her passions rang true just as much as her doubts, fears and commitment issues. Carson, oh well, Carson... He is your Carmack hottie with all the great character treats and great sense of humor. Simply my favorite male MC of Carmack so far. He totally out done my old favorite Hunter, by MILES"In the end, he picks a television show on Netflix instead of a movie....something British about time travel. He doesn't start it at the beginning, but instead starts me on an episode from one of the later seasons that he says can stand alone. It's a little cheesy, with some kind of techno sci-fi introduction music, but he seems excited about it"Both MC’s battle with expectations, try to overcome fears and fight for high dreams. It’s relatable, in that we all do that in that age. Carmack however beautifully describes their battles, their worries and most of all their passions. The reason they dream high.The relationship between Dallas and her dad. *sigh* Fathers and daughters that are both stubborn that somehow struggle to find their way forward in their relationship. Gosh, it would be impossible to relate to them more“He’d be wishing a lot harder if you’d added my suggestion.”“Why don’t you go mentally scar a band member or something?”My favorite part of the entire book though are the interactions and relationships between all the characters. They are so well written, they feel real. I feel like I got a glimpse into a Texas Football team, like I became friends with some of them. Well, as I said, a sucker for character driven stories, but only when the characters are so well written that I feel like I know them for real. More than any other of her novels, Carmack got it right this time. To be honest, so much of the novel rang true for me because I could relate to so many aspects of it, despite the fact that I know really little about Football and have never been in Texas.“ You're the thing that quiets all my worries and doubts and fears. You’re it for me. So fun if you’d like, but I’ll follow. You can try to hold me at an arms length, but I’ll never stop trying to pull you close.”love Carmack’s writing style. One of the reason’s I’ve read every single thing of hers I got my hands on. I loved her debut Losing it. It’s great. But this, I way better. It’s amazing to see how far Carmack has come, how much she honed her craft. Seriously impressive.So as I am traveling to BEA. I finally got around to read this. And frankly it couldn’t be more appropriate, because I am hopefully going to meet Carmack! Which at the moment totally outshines the fact that I will have to wait MONTHS before I finally get to read Silas Book.When I read Behind the Book, I wanted to hug Carmack! (well e-hug her, I’m not particularly touchy feely) It made everything so much more meaningful. I think lots of us gals can relate Fathers & Daughter has inspired a many great minds for a reason. But more so, I think being an expat made most of what she said resonate in my heart. THANK YOU, Cora *insert big hug*! It’s the most beautiful way any one has reminded me of my father, my relationship with him, my upbringing and my home!In my opinion Carmack’s best novel to date. An absolute must read!

This was a fast-paced story that I truly enjoyed. With a few minor details that bugged me about the female protagonist, the experience was great for me and I'm glad I finally picked up a story written by Carmack.All Lined Up really delivered a realistic portrayal of college kids trying to figure out their lives. I liked that the story's told in alternating POVs so that readers can get inside the head of both Dallas and Carson. Let's start with the latter because I really liked him and had no issues with him at all. Carson was...how to say it....a sweetheart. I liked how supportive, hard-working, and ambitious he was. He knew what he wanted and he went for it. I liked the fact that as much as he had feelings for Dallas, initially he was willing to suppress that for her sake and for trying to stay focus on his goal. And when their feelings for each other proved to be too strong to fight, it was wonderful seeing how much he wanted to make things work while trying to make her feel comfortable with however she wanted the relationship to be. Carson really catered to Dallas' needs throughout the story and he was impeccably lovable. This is the kind of boyfriend girls should have.Where Dallas is concerned, I liked her somewhat, but at times I was kind of mad at her because she could be hardheaded and dramatic in her reactions to certain things. While her feelings were understandable in some aspect, being that she's the daughter of a stern college football coach and half the team wanted to hook up with her, there were times I felt like she was too angry at the world and needed to sort out her emotions. Thankfully for Carson, her shield began to crack and she started to open up and realize that she needed to figure things out and not be so enraged about stuff not working out and being held back. Cause really, it only takes her being a bit more driven in going after her dreams and not allowing her father to dictate (even though he has her best interest at heart.)Speaking of Dallas' father, he was a good character. A great coach too, and as much as Dallas goes on about him, I didn't get the sense that he was as fearful as she made him out to be. He seemed like a nice enough man and he wasn't even too hard on Carson, even when he found out about their relationship.Other characters I liked were Stella (love the inclusion of diversity because it adds variety). She was a cool, fun friend. Just hated that she wanted to hook up with a slime like Silas even though he wanted to hook up with Dallas. Well, whatever, that's her I guess. And oh, I liked Carson's friend, Ryan. I wish we got a lot more of him in the story and hopefully he'll be included a lot more, as in play out an interesting story surrounding him in the next installment.Overall, it was an enjoyable read. I liked that this is a series and we get to experience more of this exciting college life of two interesting characters. Definitely going to stick with it to discover how their lives take off from here on out.