Book Review – For You (The Burg #1) by Kristen Ashley

“Since I was three, there’s never been a day when I wasn’t in love with you.”

• Buy FOR YOU on KINDLE (Amazon)

Woah! What a roller-coaster of a book!! It went from creepy to intense to hot ‘n’ steamy to sweet to sad to beautiful… it had twists and turns and a story built in layers forward as well as dug in layers backwards…. quite the ride!! And I loved it!

So the back story that you go into this book knowing from the blurb is that Alexander Colton and Febuary Owens were always meant to be together – they were together growing up, together in high school, everyone knew they were destined for each other… but something happened and Feb left Colt. No one knows why, but now, 20 years later, the story begins.

Right from the start, the tone of this book is grittier, more intense, and more serious than some of KA’s other series (especially considering it starts off at a chilling, grisly murder crime scene at Feb’s bar that Colt, now a cop, comes to investigate), but its still pure, brilliant KA writing that sucks you right into the world. I love that her writing style is just so familiar to me, its like coming home to start one of her books – such a wonderful feeling. LOVE!!

At the scene of the gruesome murder, the reader is introduced to Feb and Colt and their shared and, at the time, unknown history. As the reader, we know that whatever happened to them years ago was heart breaking and sad, but we don’t know exactly what it is.

Its clear that, throughout all the years of separation, neither Feb nor Cold have let go of their feelings for each other, but at the same time, aren’t able to give into them, leaving you wracking your brain trying to figure out what could possibly have ever come between a couple so clearly meant for each other.

Naturally, of course, there is a way found for Feb to end up moving in with Colt (completely platonically, of course, *nods seriously*.. for protection. *continues nodding* mmhmm.. we all know where this is gonna lead now don’t we? *grin*) and one thing leads to another and soon they are on their way to an adorably swoony reunion <3

I loved how this story highlights that if the love is pure and real, no amount of years of separation will ever really dull it. Totally beautiful concept.

“There’s no words to explain how big it was, what Colt and I had, or how much it hurts when something that big in your life is swept away, or how empty that place is that he once filled, or how impossible it is to find something to fill it…“

The more Colt and Feb came together, the more I began to squee and sigh over them, but remember that throughout it all there is the under current of mystery with not knowing who the killer is, and with waiting to figure out what happened in their past.

But once things start to build for them, oooooooohhh boy does the HOTNESS begin!! Nothing like a build up of 20 years to make the sex fan-yourself intense!!  And once Alpha Colt has claim to his girl, his pulls out all the swoony, bossy, possessive stops while at the same time making my heart melt and go awwwww 🙂 I just loved seeing the two of them come back together again *dreamy sigh*

“Your mother doesnt fuck around,” Colt remarked.
“I hope you didn’t have anything in there that was precious.”
Colt looked at her and said, “The only things precious in my life breathe.” 

*swoon* freaking LOVE that line!!

The psycho murderer in this is “without a moral compass” and just totally way-the-freaking-hell creepy in a deeeeeeply chilling way – making me alternately shudder and go ewwwwwww. This one is actually smart, disturbed, who has thought out what they were doing. Have I mentioned creepy and chilling yet?? The murders are very interconnected, personal and now the cover of the book makes sense to me *shudder*

The story is told in alternating POVs, but it was Colt’s POV that was the most interesting to me because he was not only trying to solve the murder, but was also trying to piece together the puzzle of his and Feb’s past and trying to understand how, somehow, the murder and those events might be tied together.

Of course, I won’t tell you what it is, but I will say that my heart was POUNDING when the explanation comes out! Its told from Colt’s POV and you experience the shock and realization as everything clicks into place for him. Its huge!! I just love moments like that in books!

The wonderful thing is that once the muck and turmoil of the past was finally figured out, it left Colt and Feb open to go for what they both really wanted all along – each other 🙂

“Romeo and Juliet, say they didn’t die but Juliet got pissed and took off. Everyone would know it was Romeo and Juliet, would always be Romeo and Juliet, even if later Romeo hooked up with Nancy. No one ever heard of Nancy, doesn’t even sound right, Romeo and Nancy. Everyone knows Romeo’s meant to be with Juliet. Even if Romeo loved Nancy, Nancy would always know she was never Juliet.“

I actually really loved that neither Colt nor Feb were perfect characters. Yes, in a perfect world, if they made perfect decisions, then the decisions they made in their past would have been different. But they both fucked up. They both paid the price. They both knew it, admitted it. And they were both ready to move on and not dwell in the past, but to live in the present. I really admired that about both of them and I love that they had a second chance at their love.

“Then in my ear, he said, “I remember everything about you and I remember all the reasons why I loved you. Never could forget even when I tried… Who knows, baby? We had all that time together, I coulda got used to it, learned to take it for granted.” His arms gave me a squeeze. “Now, that’ll never happen.”

And I just can’t say enough how much I JUST FREAKING LOVE Kristen Ashley’s writing style!! I think she could make a scene about paint drying riveting (not that I’m at all comparing this book to that, just saying that she works magic into her words). Her writing style totally connects you to the story, and the characters, no matter what is going on in the scene.

The book didn’t make me cry ever although I did get a little chocked up twice near the end, which, as usual, left me smiling, awww-ing and grinning… there wasn’t an epilogue in this book but KA writes the best endings and this was was no exception.

An amazing start to this series… I cannot WAIT to get to book 2 since everyone is RAVING about it!! *squee*

**oh and can I just throw a shout-out out to the character of Graham Reece who was only in a few scenes of this book but TOTALLY made me SWOON!!! I am SO looking forward to his book (which is the next book in the Colorado Mountain series). YAY!

Rating: 4.5+ stars!!

• Buy FOR YOU (Kindle)

** SERIES READING ORDER **

#1 FOR YOU (Colt & Feb) — Buy for Kindle | My Review

#2 AT PEACE (Joe & Vi) — Buy for Kindle | My Review

#3 GOLDEN TRAIL (Layne & Rocky) — Buy for Kindle | My Review

#4 GAMES OF THE HEART (Miky & Dusty) — Buy for Kindle | My Review

#5 THE PROMISE (Benny & Frankie — Buy for Kindle | My Review