Review - Real - Katy Evans

Title: Real
Author: Katy Evans
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release Date: May 28th, 2013
Series: Real, Raw & Ripped #1
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Synopsis

Remington Tate has a bad-boy rep in and out of the ring, a granite-hard body, and a raw, animal power that sends his female fans into a frenzy. But from the moment their eyes lock, the only woman he wants is Brooke Dumas. His desire is pure, all-consuming, and REAL.

Hired to keep his perfect body working like a machine, Brooke finally has the lucrative sports therapy job she’s been dreaming of. But as she tours the dangerous underground fighting circuit with Remy and his team, Brooke’s own body becomes alive with the most primal of hungers. If what happens between Brooke and Remy is ever as light as a flirtation, it quickly becomes an erotic obsession for them both, and promises so much more.

But their white-hot lust has a dark side—and when Remy’s deepest secret comes to light and Brooke’s familial duties demand action, will the pair be able to hang on, or will everything that once seemed so real suddenly fade away like an illusion?

My rating:

This book was a train wreck. One giant, full-blown, explosive catastrophe filled with twisted piles of sexual tension, fragments of intense lust, and the shattered remains of angsty, heated arguments. A train wreck, indeed. So now, if you’re wondering why I gave it four stars it’s because…I enjoyed the vast majority of it.

Not once was I ever bored with this book. Its fast pace and the electric way Katy Evans wrote it kept me with my Nook practically glued to my fingers. I stayed up the entire night reading it, the glow maybe hurting my eyes a little, but I’d be lying if I said I wished I could have those hours back. And, yeah, electric is probably a weird word to describe K.E.’s writing, but it’s the only thing that fits. I could try to explain it, but I feel like direct quotes would be the only thing to do it any significant amount of justice:

“He looks into my face again, his eyes seething with desire. I think I just nodded in agreement, but I’m too shaky to know for sure. A sweltering fever runs unleashed through me. My legs won’t stop trembling as every one of my cells screams in lust because I want him now. I want him now.”

And then there’s…

“Holding me protectively in his strong arms, he brushes my hair back as his lips buzz along the bare curve between my neck and collar, his fingers sliding up my neck as he once again, like a chant, nuzzles my ear and tells me, ‘Mine. Tonight.’”

So, yeah, sexual tension galore. I’d say about 95% of the entire book was sexual tension. And that’s great if you’re into that sort of thing, but at times it read like pure smut. I’m no prude, and I’m not going to lie and say I’ve never read an erotica book before, but at times I found myself cringing at some of the word choice.

“Even though he’s wearing sweatpants and an easy T-shirt, there’s no way you can miss the clench of the muscles of his upper body through the damp cotton fabric, and the way his sweatpants hang low on his narrow hips make my breasts feel so heavy and painful I swear to god I can’t imagine how it will feel when I’m lactating one day.”

Now, outside of the context of the novel, nothing's wrong with lactating boobs. It's natural. But in direct contrast with Remy's hotness, it's just so out of place.

Those quotes are just few of many of the lusty thoughts our narrator, Brooke Dumas, has for Remington “Remy” Tate, the hero. There’s about a billon more where they came from, too. While I did like the intensity, I wished it had been toned down a bit to allow more room for the romance. Halfway through the book, I was already aware of how much Brooke and Remy wanted to bang. I got it. Cool. But where was the swoony romance? The meaningful conversation, expressed outside of song lyrics? (Though I will admit that the lyric communication was my favorite part.) A connection that didn’t involve sex, for once? The love between them, I feel, wasn’t as clear as it could’ve been. (Until the end, at least.) I didn’t experience them falling in love like I would’ve wanted to. Mostly, I just felt Brooke’s sex muscles clenching every time she even thought of Remy.

Another thing that kind of got squashed in Brooke’s sex-starved narrative was the characterization. I got no sense of character until I was almost done with the book. Remy was supposed to be this super hot, cocky, amazing, powerful, troubled guy. And I wanted to see those things more than I wanted to hear about how much Brooke wanted to jump his bones. The same with Brooke. I actually liked her, once I got past her smutty inner thoughts. She was cool and sensible. It wasn’t until the issue with her sister that I began to see some depth.

Despite the things I said above, I fell for Brooke and Remy’s relationship. It may have taken some time, but it got there, so I’m glad I read until the end. I really liked that things weren’t so happy-happy-joy-joy between them all the time. The way that they Remy fought to keep Brooke at a distance first, and then fought to keep her close. The way that Brooke’s emotions teetered a few times because of how much she wanted him.

“He must have wanted a different reaction to his gesture. He must have wanted me to be all gushy and tell him, ‘Oh my stars, you’re so amazing!’ But I won’t. Because I hate what he does to me. I hate that I want him like this, hate that I feel so volatile I want to tear his eyes out and then go cry about it.”

I’m such a sucker for angsty love affairs, I couldn’t help but give this surprisingly thrilling train wreck of a romance four stars.

 ***A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

Review - Frigid - By: J. Lynn

Title: Frigid
Author: J. Lynn
Publisher: Spencer Hill Contemporary
Release Date: July 15th, 2013
Series: Frigid #1
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Synopsis via Goodreads

For twenty-one-year-old Sydney, being in love with Kyler isn't anything new. They'd been best friends ever since he pushed her down on the playground and she made him eat a mud pie. Somewhere over the years, she fell for him and fell hard. The big problem with that? Kyler puts the 'man' in man-whore. He's never stayed with a girl longer than a few nights, and with it being their last year in college, Syd doesn't want to risk their friendship by declaring her love.

Kyler has always put Syd on a pedestal that was too high for him to reach. To him, she's perfect and she's everything. But the feelings he has for her, he's always hidden away or focused on any other female. After all, Kyler will always be the poor boy from the wrong side of tracks, and Syd will always be the one girl he can never have.

But when they're stranded together at a posh ski resort due to a massive Nor'easter, there's nothing stopping their red-hot feelings for each other from coming to the surface. Can their friendship survive the attraction? Better yet, can they survive at all? Because as the snow falls, someone is stalking them, and this ski trip may be a life-changer in more ways than one.

My rating:

J. Lynn's Frigid was just the pick-me-up I needed after having just put two books at DNF about halfway through each. I've yet to read a story by this woman that I didn't love, and I can't say that about any of my other favorite authors, which is why J. Lynn (otherwise known as Jennifer L. Armentrout) ranks #1 on my "omg-why-can't-I-write-like-you" list of both contemporary & paranormal fiction authors. With Frigid she delivered like she always does. It was a quick and light read, yet still contained the deeply emotional undertones infused with the dry, witty humor that I've come to expect from J.L.

The novel's concept itself was enough to keep me interested. Two best friends both in love with the other but afraid to ruin their friendship. From the start, I sensed I was in for a gritty, relatable story with characters I'd sympathize with and a relationship I'd root for. And by the end, that's what I got. BUT there was a bit of frustration on my end that I had to endure before I could easily accept their HEA.

So, the book is told in dual first-person P.O.V. with the main characters being Sydney "Syd" Bell and Kyler Quinn. (Love that name, btw. Reminds me of Sleeping With Siren's lead singer Kellin Quinn.)

*insert dreamy sigh*

Now, where was I?

Oh, right. So Syd seemed sympathetic enough in the beginning, with her unrequited love for her best friend and all. She'd apparently been in love with him since he pushed her down in the playground when they were little. (My cliche detector bristled a bit at that, but it's J.L. so I looked over it.) As for Kyler. He'd always seemed to be yucking it up (or fucking it up, if you're not into sugar coating things) in a sea of endless women and booze since high school. (Which brings to mind other man-whore males in the genre, but that's a different story. Story in question? Namely: Thoughtless By: S.C. Stephens.)

All right, I'm done being sidetracked. Promise.

So, I have to admit, I was a little confused with their dynamic at first. I thought Syd simply had repressed feelings for her clueless best friend. And I thought the same for Kyler. Emphasis on REPRESSED & CLUELESS. Yet, within the first few chapters, they were both getting grabby. I had to stop myself and think: "Huh? I thought they weren't being open about their mutual lust. So why are they suddenly getting so touchy feely?" It all just seemed a little unfounded. Like, there'd been nothing leading up to it and them BAM! They're playing grab-ass (metaphorically--sort of) while I was still stuck on the part where they were just friends. But as the story progressed and I had the opportunity to really delve into their emotions, my confusion vanished so everything was cool by the end.

Most of their conflict consisted of these two young-and-restlessly-horny hard-heads confronting their love for each other. That's it. Simple, right? Uh, no. Like I said--hard-heads. Syd had to get over the insecurities of her past as well as her present insecurities over all the girls Kyler had "dated". And by "dated" I mean "had done the horizontal tango with". Or, in less corny terms, slept with. Anyway, that was Syd's problem. Kyler's problem was that he needed to 1) keep it in his pants and 2) get over his notion that he wasn't good enough for Syd. But with all the horizontal tangoing going on with countless girls, I could see how he'd get that idea. Just sayin'.

As for the conflict outside of their relationship: when they get snowed into a cabin on a ski trip, they find out some psycho is out trying to sabotage their lives. Now, I don't know if the culprit was supposed to be a mystery or not, but they weren't. I knew exactly who it was the WHOLE TIME. I'm surprised the characters themselves didn't figure it out. I mean COME ON. All they had to do was think "hey, who have we pissed off in the last day or two?" and the answer would've been right there. Yet, for some reason, when the culprit was revealed, Syd was still shocked. I felt like the chick in the movie theater yelling at the screen with this one.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed Frigid. Then again, I'd expect nothing less from J.L. Seriously, I doubt I'll ever live to see the day this woman writes a horrible book. It's just impossible. No pressure or anything, J.L.!!!

Favorite Quotes

Grabbing my suitcase, he grunted. "What did you pack in here? A legion of fat and angry babies?"

***

He got his foot in a groove and propelled himself up to the limb closest to my window. Wrapping his hands around it, he looked at me. His cheeks were rosy from the cold and his eyes glittered in the moonlight. "If I fall and break my neck, will you say something nice at my funeral? Like 'Kyler was usually more graceful?'"

Review - Lover At Last - By: J.R. Ward (Black Dagger Brotherhood Series #11)

Title: Lover At Last
Author: J. R. Ward
Publisher: NAL Hardcover
Release Date: March 26th, 2013
Series: Black Dagger Brotherhood #11
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Synopsis via Goodreads

Qhuinn, son of no one, is used to being on his own. Disavowed from his bloodline, shunned by the aristocracy, he has finally found an identity as one of the most brutal fighters in the war against the Lessening Society. But his life is not complete. Even as the prospect of having a family of his own seems to be within reach, he is empty on the inside, his heart given to another....

Blay, after years of unrequited love, has moved on from his feelings for Qhuinn. And it’s about time: The male has found his perfect match in a Chosen female, and they are going to have a young—just as Qhuinn has always wanted for himself. It’s hard to see the new couple together, but building your life around a pipe dream is just a heartbreak waiting to happen. As he’s learned firsthand.

Fate seems to have taken these vampire soldiers in different directions... but as the battle over the race’s throne intensifies, and new players on the scene in Caldwell create mortal danger for the Brotherhood, Qhuinn finally learns the true definition of courage, and two hearts who are meant to be together... finally become one.

My rating:

Words cannot even begin to explain what I went through reading this fantastic book. But, well, since this is a book review, I guess I'll have to try.

After being strung along book after book, dying to know what was going to become of Qhuinn and Blay, they finally got their HEA. And all I could think at the end of the book was: FINALLY! But the process of reading definitely was not an easy one. I can't really count how many times I mentally ranted in anger, or literally had to sit up and re-read something, or was going out of my mind with excitement, or was trying to keep my tears from falling because I was reading in public and that would make me look like a total weirdo crying over my nook. And yes, I own a nook, not a kindle. Take that, Amazon!

The main point is, I couldn't control myself while I read the whole thing. This book had pretty much everything. The good (Quay, the Brotherhood, new and recurring characters), the bad (not really much of it) and the downright ugly (mostly me and my trying-to-hold-in-tears-face).

The Good

1. Getting Reacquainted with the Brotherhood

I can't even explain how completely awesome it was to be back in J.R. Ward's world, back with the Brotherhood. The book didn't quite get to them first--it actually began with two humans stealing Qhuinn's car--but when it did...it was like freaking homecoming. I couldn't wait to get updates on my favorite couples. I couldn't wait to hear about them kicking lesser ass. I just couldn't wait. Each Brother was true to character (like J.R. Ward and her unbelievable writing style would allow for anything else). They were still the smoking-like-crazy, curse-word-throwing, witty, alcoholic hardasses I remembered from the last book.

"A deep breath was taken and let out, as if the civilian was staring at that exit and wondering if V's pissed-off departure might just cause him to wake up dead later on in the day."

2. Band of Bastards
All right, I'll admit it if no one else will. I freaking love the Band of Bastards. They are the most formidable, relatable foes I've read in a while. I like how they don't just want to mindlessly take down Wrath (much as I love the Blind Kind) and have no plan after that. I like how they're smart and cunning and actually pose a threat. However, I like how they're--Xcor in particular--has insecurities. He's not so arrogant that he thinks taking the throne from Wrath will be easy. And, of course, there's Layla. I don't want to veer too far off topic, but there was one quote about her internal struggle with her growing affection for Xcor that eased my dislike for her. It happened after she saw Xcor again and they agreed that they could never work out.

"Caught in the middle, between her mind and her soul, she was torn asunder even as she remained whole."

Xcor thinks he's not even worthy of being in her presence. Clearly, that's not how she feels, but that's not the point. The point is: he was weaknesses. And that's what makes him great.

3. FREAKING ASSAIL AND SOLA!!!
In my opinion, they made the whole book. Sorry, Quay. But I just couldn't help myself. I started focusing less and less on Quay and the BoB and the others and started focusing more on the hottest new couple in Caldwell. Sola's a new character, and I already love her. She's street-smart as hell, which is difficult to find nowadays. She's capable, despite what happened at the end of the book. And she keeps Assail on his toes when nobody else can. She's tough as rocks, but she's also vulnerable. Plus, her grandmother was adorable. I loved the mystery of her relationship with Assail. I loved the cat and mouse game they played with each other, though it was borderline stalkerish. I loved that they didn't seem to be able to control themselves around one another, but never lost who they were. Sola was level-headed and determined. Assail was an all around underground businessman with a no-nonsense attitude. And he was funny as hell.

"Assail did not condone swearing. In his mind, it was common and unnecessary. That being said, he'd had a shitty fucking week."

"As Assail drove through the grand gates of an estate in the wealthy part of Caldwell, he was annoyed. Exhausted. On edge. And not just because he'd been doing cocaine regularly and not eating."


4. Trez and iAm

I was glad to see the Shadows had a more important role in this book. Mostly because Trez is really, really funny. Also, we get to see more of why they're in the novels and how they came to be. Of course, that's not all. Trez is running from his old society, apparently, and iAm is his accomplice. I like how Trez is a complete and total manwhore in the beginning, but as soon as he gets to the Adirondack cabins where the Chosen are staying, he turns into a complete and total babbling fool for the Chosen Selena. It kind of reminds me of Butch when he met Marissa. A hardass wrapped around a woman's little finger, and she doesn't even know it.

The Bad

Like I said, there wasn't really much that was bad. The only thing I think got on my nerves a little was the constant name dropping. I couldn't read a single chapter without hearing about what brand someone was wearing, or how fancy this person's watch was. Or how expensive that person's shoes were or how well their tailored clothes fit.

The Ugly

I'm not entirely sure Qhuinn and Blay's relationship counts as "ugly". I mean, usually the word connotes something bad, and that was the section above. And their relationship wasn't technically bad.However, at some points, their relationship was...a mess, to say the least. It was rocky for the majority of the book, only getting resolved near the very end. There were a lot of misunderstandings and miscommunications that I felt could've been resolved easily if Qhuinn and Blay weren't such hard heads. But I guess they wouldn't be who they were if they weren't stubborn, so I can't really say anything. Still, it was hard to read. One moment they were strangers, the next they were in each other's beds, and then they hated each other, and then they were strangers again...it sucked. And I think that was the point. Qhuinn and Blay--but mostly Qhuinn--had to grow up some before they could have any sort of relationship. He needed to accept who he was and get rid of his past. The journey took up the length of the entire novel, and that wasn't preferable, but it was necessary. I like how they were in love the whole time, and came close to telling one another, but it never seemed to happen. It build up tension, made me wish they'd just tell each other even more. I like how the barriers that were Layla and Saxton weren't completely ignored, and they rode off into the sunset together just forgetting about everything and everyone else. It was realistic and believable. I like how they both seemed lost without one another. It made the inevitable reunion at the end. And when that reunion happened...I was sobbing like a freaking baby.

"Forcing his lids down, he brought Blay's knuckles to his mouth, brushing a kiss against them. Then he gave himself up to sleep, letting himself fall into unconsciousness, knowing that, at least for the next few hours, he was safe in the arms of his one and only."

"Qhuinn's head cranked around, leaving its cage of the hand that had remained, his blue and green eyes red rimmed and watery. 'I have loved you for years. I have been in love with you for years and years and years...throughout school and training...before transitions and afterward...when you approached me and yes, even now that you're with Saxton and you hate me. And that...shit...in my fucking head locked me down, locked everything down...and it cost me you'."

Blay to Qhuinn: "Because I was, and I remain, utterly and completely and totally...in love with you."

I'm glad that Quay finally got their HEA after so long. But, even now, I'm dying to get my hands on the next book just so that I can find out what happens with Sola and Assail. I expected Quay to dominate the entire story, but they ended up sharing the spotlight. And now, I'll just have to fill the void with other novels until I can return to the extraordinary world that is the Black Dagger Brotherhood.