5 stars

Book Review – Seduced In The Dark (The Dark Duet #2) by CJ Roberts

September 15, 2012 by Aestas · 9 Comments

**This is a SPOILER-FREE review**

5 DARK, EMOTIONALLY MINDFUCKING STARS!!!!!!

“Some stories aren’t black and white…”

W.O.W. This series blew me away. I can barely process thought after reading this book.

CJ Roberts has written an outstanding novel with a twisted and yet beautiful love story, multi-layered, complex characters that will test the boundaries of your heart and mind, a plot that will captivate and disturb you but at the same time leave you unable to turn away, and a raw, gritty, brutal world of betrayal, revenge, honor, lust, and love. It seduced me and it sickened me. I felt emotionally drained, utterly mindfucked and yet, ultimately, somehow completely at peace. Definitely one of top favorite reads of the year.

This book is INTENSE!! It is raw, deeply disturbing and dark, and yet strangely heart warming despite my reading most of it with my heart lodged firmly in my throat. This book stripped my emotions bare. My heart ached to the point of physical pain, and my mind was toyed with to the point where I could barely trust anything I was thinking.

It is a sweeping, epic, emotional rollercoaster full of unexpected twists and turns. This is a book about the world of sex-trafficking – there are instances of abuse, rape, slavery, BDSM (for real though – no safe word, no consent, no way out). There is no way to sugar-coat that and the author never shies away from telling it exactly how it is. In many ways, I found what happened in this book more disturbing than the first one. Sometimes I would just sit there with my hand over my mouth after scenes going ‘Oh. My. God. Did I really just read that?!” …. and yet at the same time this book opened my heart and mind to things I never thought I could possibly accept.

This book starts off four months after the end of book 1, Captive in the Dark. I won’t say anything about the plot because honestly, anything I say would spoil WAY too much. Suffice it to say, that I LOVED the ending. That alone, should tell you all you need to know about it 🙂 This book has lots of perspectives and lots of timelines but primarily, we have a dual story line told through a mix of memories that fill in the blanks of events in the past 4 months, as well as a present day story line. And, just like with book 1, we have both Livvie and Caleb’s POVs as well as a new one I’ll let you find out about on your own.

The story builds. And I mean, it BUILDS. Towards the final 75% I honestly felt like I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. I just sat there with tears in my eyes watching all the pieces of this intricate, horrific, heart wrenching story come together. By the end, I was pretty much just sobbing uncontrollably. It was the perfect ending. My heart felt battered and bruised but I was just so incredibly happy.

Livvie had grown a lot in this book. I loved her in book 1, but she blew me away in book 2. Her inner strength and the depth of her understanding and compassion was absolutely beautiful. Her uncrushable spirit was what got me through reading some of the darker scenes. She saw Caleb for who he really was. And she knew what she really felt for him. She saw the man behind the monster and was perceptive, forgiving and caring enough to understand why he was the way he was.

“I wanted Caleb. I knew it was stupid. I knew he was a terrible person, who’d done terrible things. I knew he didn’t deserve me or my love. I didn’t care. During the course of our time together, I’d fall in love with my captor. I ‘d fallen in love with his smell and his taste; his smile, kindness, and yes, even his cruelty because I knew it was a part of him.
I wanted him to know. I wanted him to know everything and I wanted it to mean something to him. I wanted him to choose me and accept me. I wanted him to leave everything behind and love me.”

Caleb, Caleb, Caleb… the “monster with a heart of gold” … He is pretty much the epitome of a conflicted, deeply tortured character with possibly one of THE most horrific and heart breaking back stories I’ve ever read. He was cruel, but yet kind; brutal, and yet caring… and his journey was him finding out which side of him was more dominant – the man inside, or the monster he showed the world?

“He had told her he wasn’t her Prince Charming, but what he hasn’t said, was he wished he could be. Once upon a time, he may have been… normal. Before he had been stolen, before the beatings and the rapes and the killing – he could have been something different than what he was.”

“He didn’t like the feelings running through him…. trying to find the exact moment in which he’d lost control and fallen under the spell of the woman who was supposed to be his captive.”

There were many, MANY times when I questioned whether or not anything he could ever do could possibly redeem him in my eyes. There were times I hated him, utterly and completely, with every fiber of my being. But then his tenderness would hit my heart so deep, I knew I just couldn’t stop myself from loving him.

His journey in this book was heart breaking as he struggled between being true to his heart and being true to the intense loyalty he felt for the man that raised him. I got caught up in his struggle – at times I wanted to believe in him and he made me fall in love with his humanity – with the tender, caring, side of him that he couldn’t hide from Livvie despite his best efforts, but then the harsh, brutal switch from that to cold hearted trainer would rip my heart out and I’d spiral back into confusion, betrayal and uncertainty.

Its hard because you find yourself genuinely, honestly, full-heartedly sympathizing with someone involved in human trafficking and murder. But at the same time, you have to consider that he too was violated, for years. It was what he grew up with and the only world he knew. Nothing of what he does is out of outright cruelty. But the tricky part is that that isn’t a justification, but it still makes you question everything you are feeling. Its very thought provoking. Can there ever be redemption for violation? There is no black and white answer.

“Every time I think you’re coming around, every time I let myself hope, you crush me. You rip everything out! Sometimes I think I fucking hate you. Sometimes I know I hate you. And Still! Still, Caleb – I love you. I put my faith in you. I believe you when you say its going to be alright.”

“Live for me, Kitten. Be all those things you’d never be with me. Go to school. Meet a normal boy and fall in love. Forget me.” *SOB*

There were times when I’d swoon over how much I wanted them to find a way out of their horrible situation and just end up happily together, and then at other times, the reality of their world, of what was actually happening would just jolt into me and make me sick to my stomach. And yet… against every piece of sane judgement in my mind, I desperately, with all my freaking heart, wanted them to be together.

CJ Roberts is an absolutely BRILLIANT and phenomenally talented author. Her words just seep into your soul dragging you right into the story. They make you question everything you thought you were sure about and leave hungry for more. The writing style is captivating and enthralling, and the flow of the story is perfect. It opened my mind more than any book I’ve ever read and I know this is one of those stories that has left a mark on my heart and will not be forgotten.

If you can maintain an open mind, this is one of THOSE amazing series that will stay with you long after you close the pages of the book.

This is absolutely NOT a stand-alone. YOU MUST READ BOOK 1, CAPTIVE IN THE DARK, FIRST!!!!

CASTING

Click here

** SERIES READING ORDER **

Book #1: CAPTIVE IN THE DARK
Buy for Kindle| Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

Book #2: SEDUCED IN THE DARK
Buy for Kindle| Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

Book #3: EPILOGUE
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

Book Review – Love Unrehearsed (Love #2) by Tina Reber

September 14, 2012 by Aestas · 9 Comments

5++ HUGE SWOONY STARS!!!!!

I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK. *dreamy sigh* Pure, heart-melting perfection!!!

“You’re my world, babe. Mine. Not theirs. They can have me, but they can’t have you, too…. I meant it when I said forever… You are it for me… The me that is standing in front of you right now is not the same me that’s out there in the spotlight… They only get the outside, not the inside. That’s for you.“

This book made my heart deeply happy and left me thoroughly contented and elated. A huge reason why I loved it was that it had one of THE MOST FUNCTIONAL relationships I’ve ever read in it. It was SO refreshing to read a whole book about a functional, totally-in-love couple. I was blissfully wrapped up in their world with the HUGEST grin on my face while reading most of the book 😀

Right from the start, I easily slipped back into Ryan and Taryn’s world. Even though it had been quite a while since I read book 1, Love Unscripted, I had no problem instantly reconnecting with the characters and realizing just how much I had missed them.

The author perfectly captured the thrill of being in a relationship with a mega-celebrity, as well as the gritty realities that come with that world – the paparazzi, stalkers, invasion of privacy, constant media scrutiny – making Ryan and Taryn have to deal not only with their own personal life and issues, but also how all of those were seen in the public eye.

I loved how both of them learned from their mistakes. They weren’t perfect, but they both worked really freaking hard at being functional, at rationally dealing with everything and each other. It was truly a joy to read.

They had their share of issues to work through, but they worked through them so functionally that I found myself constantly wanting to just be like “f*ck yeah!!” It was like a breath of fresh air to see a couple actually talk through their issues, support each other, openly and honestly deal with things, handle things so maturely, and just love each other SO much. Their reactions, concerns, issues were all believable, understandable and I could totally sympathize with everything each of them went through.

Ryan Christensen. Definitely the sweetest and hottest Hollywood movie star to ever grace the pages of a romance novel. *swoon* *drool* *dreamy sigh* He was just so freaking HOT and PERFECT!! It melted my heart how utterly in love with Taryn he was and how completely he was devoted to her. Despite all of the pressures of his very public job, all of the gorgeous women throwing themselves at him, he always and only had eyes for Taryn.

“You’re my everything, Taryn”

Taryn was a wonderful heroine in this book. I loved that she had her own journey to go through as she dealt with the repercussions of being involved with a high-demand celebrity. I love how confidently she slipped into his world. It was daunting but she was strong and held her own and, of course, her deep love for Ryan was seriously heart warming.

I loved seeing them work through the highs and lows of the industry and the highs and lows of a relationship, supporting each other through their joys and fears and continuing to grow stronger and stronger.

I can honestly say that there is NO stupidity in this book. Seriously, you guys have NO idea how HAPPY that made me. I didn’t want to put it down – it kept me flipping the pages and totally engrossed in the story.

This book was filled with feel-good moments, emotional moments, heart racing and heart warming moments, functionality, swooniness, HOTNESS (let’s just say that now that they are traveling everywhere together, they have lots of lots of crazy hot sex and it is on FIRE!!), laugh out loud moments, moments that gave me happy shivers, and moments that made me clutch my heart and wipe my happy tears… and the ending left me with the most complete and contented feeling ever. That isn’t to say there weren’t moments of heart ache, but they were dealt with so well by the characters that it only added to the strength of the story 🙂 … and yes, there was a moment where I actually literally cried out “THIS BOOK IS AWESOME!!!!” when I was reading it right after squeeing loudly and thoroughly freaking my dog out, but I digress…

The ending was absolute PERFECTION!! I couldn’t have imagined a happier or more perfectly beautiful ending for Ryan and Taryn… after I ended it, I just sat there hugging my kindle with the biggest, silliest grin on my face. There are no loose ends, no unanswered questions, just a wonderful, heart warming HEA.

If you want a book that’s going to make you happy and swoony, this is it!! HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!

(But be sure to read book 1, Love Unscripted FIRST!!)

**I also just wanted to thank Tina Reber for giving me an ARC to review and for writing this AMAZING book 😀

CASTING:

Ryan –>Click here
Ryan and Taryn –> Click here

READING ORDER & PURCHASE LINKS (both are currently available)

Book #1: LOVE UNSCRIPTED — Kindle | Paperback
Book #2: LOVE UNREHEARSED — Kindle | Paperback

Book Review – Captive In The Dark (The Dark Duet #1) by CJ Roberts

September 11, 2012 by Aestas · 18 Comments

“I wrapped my arms around him and held on as hard as I could. He was my tormentor and my solace: the creator of the dark and the light within. I didn’t care that he would undoubtedly hurt me at any moment, right now; I just needed somebody to hold me… To tell me these exact words. Its going to be okay. It wasn’t of course, I knew that. But I didn’t care, I needed the lie.”

5 MINDFUCKING STARS!!

WOW. A dark and powerful read.
UTTERLY CAPTIVATING! UTTERLY DISTURBING!

This book blew my mind. I’m seriously disturbed at how much I loved it. And yet, I think it might end up being one of my favs now. Every scene in it led to more questions, made me doubt my feelings even more. In scenarios where right and wrong seemed so incredibly and unquestionably clear cut, it it just threw all my preconceived notions right out the window and just forcibly opened my mind to more and more perspectives, more and more questions.

The writing style is seriously phenomenal and mezmerizing!!! I felt like I just wanted to highlight the whole book! It was captivating, rich, vivid, descriptive… It put me right into the character’s heads. The story flowed beautifully, the dialogue was effortless and the plot was beyond gripping. CJ Roberts is definitely one of my new favorite authors!

The book centers around Livie’s kidnapping by Caleb. As part of a complex revenge scheme twelve years in the making, he abducts her with the intent of training her as a pleasure slave and selling her into slavery to the man he is trying to take down.

When Livie wakes from a drug-enduced sleep to find herself captive, her worse nightmare is coming true. Tied to a bed, with a strange man who calls her ‘pet’ and demands she call him ‘Master’, Livie is thown into a dark, twisted world, subject to deeply erotic, deeply horrific and disturbing violations against her will. But strangest of all are the feelings she begins to have for her captor. Is there a good heart behind the monster? As the lines between captive and captor are blurred, it leaves you questioning everything you feel…..

“Your entire life is going to change. You should try to accept that, because there is no possible way to avoid it. Like it or not, fight it or don’t, your old life is over. It was over long before you woke up here.” ~Caleb

I don’t view this as a BDSM book. This isn’t BDSM as we usually see it in books, this is real life BDSM. Its not a game, its not a lifestyle, not a choice, this is LIVING in it. Its raw, gritty reality. There is no safe word, no consent, no out. The main purpose isn’t getting off, the purpose is training. End of story.

“What’s going to happen to me?” I asked quietly, almost hoping he hadn’t heard. I wasn’t sure I wanted an answer.
There was no answer – then, “Whatever I wish.”

Its just such an alarming blend of gentle and tender to harsh, brutal and controlling… and yet I was RIVITED. TO. THE. PAGE.

The author is seriously ballsy – she goes ALLLLL out in this. There is NO freaking stone left unturned… Yup, read into that ALL you want!! O_O

There were parts of the book where I was just in shock at what was happening. The purest HOLY SHIT moments you can imagine!

The whole initial concept of how easily someone can just disappear is deeply chilling. And the story starts off from Caleb’s POV. Watching him watch her, contemplate taking her. Wow. So creepy and yet captivating.

“As a slave trainer, he had trained at least a score of girls. Some were willing… Others… Coerced… But this particular slave, the one he eyed from across the busy street – she was different. She was neither willing, nor coerced, not sent to him. She was pure conquest.”

Caleb… *deep breath* what a complex character. I was utterly intrigued by him. There’s a constant counterbalance between his inner thoughts and feelings (that are more purely him) and his outer actions which are clearly the result of his rigorous, brutal and intense training and conditioning. His journey in this book is so interesting because even though he is ‘technically’ the villain of this story, he’s also the victim of his own (utterly horrific) story. I think he had a lot of humanity, but most of it though had been raped or beaten away and his journey is him struggling whether or not he can and/or wants to find it again. We watch him struggle with what he wanted to do versus what he felt compelled to do. And its a complete mindfuck because, yes he is brutal, but not in the way some crazy mindless rapist would be. So I just found myself questioning things over and over and over again…

Did I like him because he was the best in this fucked up world or did I like him because of him? Is he the villain? Or is he too a victim of his own story? Should you love him? Should you hate him? I thought I might be able to love him for a while, then I was really fucking sure I hated his guts. But not hate in the sense that I want him to die. I just want him to be less brutal and then I could love him? And then, a few pages later I sympathized with him again and started to like him again. A lot … Maybe? Gosh that sounds fucked up even to me lol. Urrrrgh!!

One minute he was gentle, the next he was a monster – almost as if the inner him, deeeeep down may have been gentle, but he is just so strongly conditioned to be a monster, that it becomes dominant. I kept alternating between almost thinking I was starting to fall for him, then he would do something that just totally fucked with my mind and, just like Livie, I just had NO clue what to feel.

“Why couldn’t he just keep being an evil, soulless bastard so I knew what his role was and I knew mine? Why did he continually have to switch back from cold and unforgiving, to comforting and warm?”

I mean, I know he’s the product of seriously mindfucking so does that excuse his behavior? Prolly not, but it makes me more sympathetic to him… I think? Or not… GAH!!! Moving on… you’ll have to read it for yourself to see what you think about it.

Livie… I loved her character. I totally felt for her. I loved her spunk and her fight. She never gave up, not really. And her inner strength, despite her nightmare-ish scenario made me totally sympathetic to her. She was never stupid, never made me want to throw my Kindle at the wall. Her thoughts and actions were totally understandable and relatable.

“He had tied me – naked – to a bedpost. To suffer. And he was somewhere in the house fucking some whore’s brains out. He wasn’t thinking of me. Of the pain I was in because of him. He simply did. Not. Care. Hot tears streamed down my face.“

I alternated between finding what I was reading hot, utterly gross, utterly disturbing and then, disturbingly cute. When Caleb would do something cute or tender, I felt myself melt a little. And that just made me want to slap myself and just go ‘Gah! what’s wrong with me?! He’s a kidnapper!! He did unspeakable things to her! But… He’s really cute. Wrong wrong wrong!! Aaaaaaaaa’

“…he stood me up and pressed my head to his chest, rocking me back and forth gently. I gripped him tightly, both arms holding fast to his waist. It had become natural for me to seek shelter in his arms, even if he had just used then to hold me down and spank me….It wasn’t enough to fuck my body, he wanted to mindfuck me too. It was working.”

Both Livie and Caleb were inexplicably and wrongly (in both cases) drawn to each other and yet their feelings were also utterly undeniable. What was there was just SO. FREAKING. WRONG!!! … and yet, I just totally wanted to root for them. What is wrong with me??!!

The book was captivating and riveting from start to finish. It never dragged. It was just one scenario after another. Like Livie, you never knew what to expect. Total mind fuck.

I don’t know what else to say except if you can keep an open mind, READ THIS BOOK!!! Its absolutely AMAZING!! The ending is most definitely a cliffhanger with many unanswered questions, but the sequel is out so you can read straight through. I can’t wait to get to it in a few days… I’ve heard its even more amazing!

** SERIES READING ORDER **

Book #1: CAPTIVE IN THE DARK
Buy for Kindle| Buy in Paperback

Book #2: SEDUCED IN THE DARK
Buy for Kindle| Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

Book #3: EPILOGUE
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

Book Review – The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

September 10, 2012 by Aestas · 216 Comments

Beautiful. Powerful. Deep. Heart-wrenching. Believable. Uplifting. Unforgettable. A must-read!!

Wow. 5+ stars.

One of my favorite reads of the year!!!!!!

The Sea of Tranquility is a beautifully written, deep, heart-wrenching drama about two damaged teens surviving unchangeable tragedies, and devastating grief, hurt, and pain, learning to cope with them, accept them, and somehow finding healing, safety and finally happiness and love in each other along the way.

Its quiet and very, very slow building but it just felt SO real and believable. Without my even realizing it, this quiet book had me worked up to the point where my heart was pounding and felt like it was being being ripped out. The emotional punch took a while to build, but when it hit, it was huge and powerful and took my breath away.

This is not your typical romance where boy meets girl and they live happily ever after. I’d call it more of a character-driven drama with a bit of a YA romance in it. It highlights the realities, horrors and imperfections of life (and, yes, love) while still having a powerfully uplifting ending,

“My name is Nastya Kashnikov.
I was a piano-playing prodigy…
I was murdered two and a half years ago.
Discuss.”

Nastya is a beautiful, bright seventeen year old girl struggling with having her dreams and life as she knew it shattered two years ago by a random act of violence. At her new school, she meets Josh, a guy who just wants to build things and be left alone, who everyone avoids and yet no one messes with. Surrounded by worlds of pain, death and self-imposed isolation, both of them have survived hurts no one their age should ever have been through and are both struggling with having survived and living with that pain every day.

One night, out on a run, Nastya ends up at Josh’s house. He’s there, in his garage that’s filled with tools and wood and he’s making something. For the first time in a long time, Nastya feels a connection of sorts with him and just sits down, quietly and watches him work. She keeps coming back every day and so begins their strange, yet beautiful relationship.

“When you look at her what do you feel? … Joy, fear, frustration, longing, friendship, anger, need, despair, love, lust.”
“Yes.”
“Yes, what?”
“All of it.”

Its not romantic for a long time, but rather what built between them is a sort of companionship or friendship based on mutual understanding, empathy, and trust as they slowly open up and confide their secrets in each other.

“I know at that moment what he’s given me…the knowledge that I am accepted here… He’s given me a place to belong.“

The thing I loved about Nastya was that she was fragile in some ways, but absolutely tough as nails in others. She wasn’t helpless or frail, despite a part of her soul being broken. She was strong, intelligent, witty, perceptive and although she made choices that people around her didn’t understand, they were her choices to make. She was sad and angry, dealing with a tragic act of random cruelty that took away her dreams. So she copes with it in the best way she knows how, by doing what feels right to her, not what anyone else wanted her to do. I loved that about her.

“Eventually, my body healed as much as it was going to. My mind started getting put back together, too. I think it’s just that the pieces got put back a little out of order. It seems like the more my body healed, the more fractured my mind became, and there aren’t enough wires and screws to fix the breaks in it.“

“With any other girl I could probably pull the classic guy fail-safe of walking over and wrapping my arms around her and letting her put her head on my shoulder. It’s cheap, but it works. Drew swear by it. But I’m afraid that in this particular instance it would result in one of two things: a string of innovative new expletives or her knee in my balls. My money’s on the knee.“

Josh was a beautiful character. Quiet, a bit of a loner, but deeply understanding, caring and protective. What I loved most about him was how strongly he respected her boundaries – giving her a safe zone to her be herself. The real her. The one she feels she has to hide from the world. Giving her the space and security of being able to share exactly as much or as little of herself as she wanted. No judgments. No questions. No obligations. He knew that she areas of her that were locked up in her hurt and he never pushed her outside her comfort zone, no matter how badly he wanted to know what happened to her.

“He needs to be able to fix things and make it all better; to believe that you’re okay so that he can believe he’s okay.”

The book starts out quiet and somber. It is slow building in every possibly way. Nothing is rushed. And although I loved it, a part of me just wished something would happen because of how slowly the story built and the romance-story lover in me wanted them to become a couple sooner (their first date is at about 65%) but having finished it and looking back on the pacing of the story, I can understand why it was the way it was. In the end, the slowness contributed to how powerfully the ending hit. And the ending was really, really beautiful.

And by really, really beautiful, I mean that I read the last two words over and over again with tears in my eyes and my hand over my mouth. I literally just sat there crying, rereading the page, letting the powerful emotional punch hit me every time. (And don’t go flipping to the back of the book to see what those words are! Seriously, you’ll ruin the whole book if you do and there’s no getting it back…)

The author is an amazingly gifted, brilliant storyteller. The book is worth reading for the writing alone. Her style is beautiful, evocative, poetic, and deeply meaningful. I’m very much looking forward to more of her work.

Absolutely everyone should read this book at some point in their lives. It was GORGEOUS and unforgettable. One of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read. Trust me, its totally worth it!

Rating: 5+ STARS! Standalone.

…

Book Review – Golden Trail (The Burg #3) by Kristen Ashley

September 9, 2012 by Aestas · 7 Comments

“Live this with me, just live it, whatever happens, however it happens, just live it with me…”

Buy GOLDEN TRAIL on KINDLE (Amazon)

**HAPPY DANCE** oooo how I loved this book! It literally made me tremble with joy (yes, literally… and my husband is still teasing me about my incessant squeeing 😛 ). But seriously, its another gorgeous, swoony, emotional beautifully written KA book that had me in happy tears and clutching my heart more times than I could count.

Tanner Layne wakes up in a hospital bed after being riddled with bullets to find Rocky at his bed side. To say their history was a mess is an understatement. 18 years ago, they had a beautiful, know-in-your-heart-this-is-meant-to-be-forever kind of romance until suddenly, with no reason, Rocky left him. Devastated and unable to find the reason why, Layne left the ‘burg and moved forward with his life while leaving his heart behind. Heart broken and angry over Rocky’s unexplained departure from his life, his condom breaks one very drunk night giving him a son he adores but saddling him with a bitchy wife he feels duty bound to stand by. Trapped for years in a loveless marriage, the only good thing left in his life becomes his two sons. Now, in present day, his ex-wife has hooked up with a real asshole he doesn’t want around his two teenage sons, and he has come back to the ‘burg in an effort to give them a better life. But when he wakes up in the hospital and sees Rocky there for him, and then they start working together to bring down the dirty cop who shot him, it reawakens his feelings for her that were buried so deep by the hurt of their past that he didn’t realize how truly strong they still were.

“Layne knew he was in love with her. Not only that, he’d never stopped loving her. Not once, not for a second, not for twenty-one years.
Fuck him.”

The whole vibe of this book is a little different than the last two in the series (For You and At Peace). It really snuck up on me because while it seemed a lot quieter and more subtle in its intensity, it packed quite the emotional punch. I cried several times (usually happy or just overly emotional tears), squeed, laughed, swooned and really just felt a lot while reading it. Something about it really spoke deep. Deep family connections, deep bonding, deep love and healing. Just. So. Freaking. Gorgeous.

And while there is still very much of the typical ‘badass’ feel that all KA books have, it has that while being very strongly family-relationship focused. It felt very real. There is a lot of family stuff that is just utterly gorgeous and because Layne has two sons (the oldest being 18), its basically a badass KA Alpha man raising KA Alpha boys – total mega swoon going on there!! I cannot possibly tell you guys how much I ADORED seeing Layne and his sons bond. Definitely led to a lot of tears and heart clutching <3

Another thing that’s different is that the whole book is from Layne’s POV! I loved seeing the life, thoughts and actions of a KA Alpha man so continuously. By always seeing the story from his POV, you totally sympathized with his lack of knowledge about the break up and were just as curious as he was to uncover the reason behind it, and you saw him fall back in love with Rocky and got to see the romance build through his eyes.

The romantic relationship part of this story is a slow, subtle but beautiful build. Its not like they see each other and the clothing articles go a-flyin’. The romance creeps up on them as they slowly and naturally ease back into the “forever” couple they were always intended to be while working out the issues left over by so many unanswered questions. *dreamy sigh* … oh, and the sexy times were HOT!! “Hands to the wall.” *fans self*

There IS a bad guy, but, unlike in previous books in this series, he isn’t really directly targeting Layne or Rocky, but rather actually serves to being them closer to each other as they work together to bring him down.

And then there is the whole issue of Rocky’s big secret – why did she leave Layne 18 years ago?? We don’t find out until late in the story – the build up is subtle but intense! As the theories started piling up in my head, I was on emotional overload. Full body chills, tears, the whole shebang!

I loved watching them come together, watching Rocky open up to him again, watching him making her feel safe, and seeing them meld their lives back together.

“I remember, Rocky. I remember everything. I remember every… fucking… thing.”

Layne was such a gorgeous Alpha. But he was open, honest, fair, loyal, no bullshit, no lies, no games. Just seeing him pass on his wisdom and teaching his sons to be the best men they could be both through his words and by practicing what he was preaching and always being there for his woman, respecting her, loving her, protecting her… helping those in need, bringing his family together… absolutely beautiful, totally swoony, and heart-melting!! <3

“Seen a lot of things, done a lot of things, wounds to the flesh hurt but they heal fast. Wounds to the soul never go away. It’s how we cope with a pain that never dies that makes us the people we are. Daily, people demonstrate acts of courage just so they can get through the night.. there are warriors and then there are warriors. In your Dad’s bed lies a warrior. Learn from her, boy.”

Rocky was a wonderful heroine. She had guts, was strong on her own, stubborn and driven. She drove Layne a little crazy sometimes with how strong she was, but that was great fun to read cuz it brought out his swoony extra protective side. But she also had a lot of buried hurt, a lot of deep understanding for love and a beautiful heart. She was the perfect match for Layne.

There were so many times in the story when I’d just be sitting there reading with tears in my eyes and my hand over my mouth… beautiful, emotional, deep. Love, love, love!

The story also ties into the previous two books in the series. We see a lot of Colt & Feb and Cal & Vi and their girls… them all living in the ‘burg together and all being in the business of protecting people, their lives intersect a lot. And its totally awesome!

I know I’ve said this a few gazillion times before, but seriously. KA writes THE. BEST. MEN. EVER. (who am I kidding, she writes pretty much the best EVERYTHING ever, but I digress). My heart just overflows with the emotions that their stories and actions wring from me and their stories settle so deeply in my heart, I feel like I know these characters personal. Utterly BRILLIANT writing. That woman has a true gift. Her writing style is just so badass. She makes absolutely everything seem larger than life and epically cool and yet so down-to-earth, real and intimate that it feels like its just you and the world you are reading about and you can just lose yourself in the words and feel like you are right freaking there.

Oh, and there is a GORGEOUS epilogue at the end of this book featuring all the characters we’ve seen in this series so far… KA’s epilogues leave you with the most wonderful, happy, full feelings ever. They leave you with the knowledge and deep certainty that everyone in them has the beautiful happy ending they deserve. *happy tear*

Rating: 5 stars!!

CASTING:

Here’s how I see Layne –> Click here
and again here –> Click here

Buy GOLDEN TRAIL (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

Book Review – The Mighty Storm by Samantha Towle

September 2, 2012 by Aestas · 20 Comments

5 stars!!!

“I love you… I’ve only ever loved one girl, Tru – and that’s you. It’s always been you. I’ve loved you from the moment I knew how to love.“

*SQUEEEEE* ABSOLUTELY AMAZING ROCKSTAR ROMANCE!!! WOW!

I am totally in LOVE with this book! Freaking. Thrilling. Read.

A well-written, beautiful story that put me through a deliciously emotional angsty ringer, made my heart race and flutter and had me swooning like crazy over Jake Wethers.

I loved the writing style right from the start. It was vivid, clean, and got you right into Tru’s head. This book made me laugh, cry, squee, cheer, gasp, sigh, swoon, melt, fan myself, take deep calming breaths in order to move on, gave me goosbumps, made my breath hitch, made me read with misty eyes for like the whole final 15%, it just TOTALLY affected me. My emotions were all over the place and all of them were INTENSE!

My heart = the author’s yo-yo. I utterly LOVED IT!!

Tru and Jake were the best of childhood friends. They did everything together. And although they were too young to really understand it, they did fall in love. Everything was perfect until his family suddenly uprouted to a different country when they were 14 and they lost touch.

Now, twelve years later, Jake has become the world famous “ultimate bad boy of rock” – living a life full of booze, parties, drugs and women , while Tru has become a music journalist. Even though he’s hugely popular, she’s never told anyone that she knew him, wanting to keep that part of her memories private. So now, when her boss signs her up to interview and write an article on him, she absolutely terrified – she knows he’s changed from the boy she knew – will he remember her? What will they say? She knows about a dark part of his past that the world doesn’t now about. Maybe he won’t want to see her? And yet at the same time, she’s utterly excited out of her mind.

“Jake Wethers, the man who used to be the boy I loved.”

Ooooooohhmigosh, when they meet for the first time again, my. heart. was. racing!!!! I was smiling, grinning, and my heart was pounding. It was AMAZING!! I love books that affect me so strongly and I have to say that from the moment I met Jake, I fell in instant love with him. INSTANT.

And its clear from the start that the spark between them has never died. And he asks her to go on tour with them as the official biographer of his tour and then oh how the fun begins as Jake, subtly at first, and later not so subtly, works hard to rekindle the romance and show Tru the depths of the feelings he’s always had for her.

“It’s always been you, Tru. Always.” *melt*”

Now, here’s the hiccup, Tru has a boyfriend, Will- a wonderful, sweet, gorgeous, loving boyfriend. And dispite her feelings towards Jake, she isn’t quite sure how he feels towards her. She has a lot of insecurities, but I found them to be understandable – annoying perhaps at times because of how badly I just wanted them to get together, but they were not ridiculous. I think its easy for people on the outside to judge her initial reaction, but honestly, in her shoes, I’d prolly be having a lot of the same thoughts myself.

There IS a little bit of a love triangle going on for a part of the book, and yes, when Jake and Tru first get physical, there IS cheating. But, and here’s the big BUT, it did not bother me (*gasp* and I’m the person who utterly HATES any cheating in books). Why did it not bother me? Because it wasn’t long and drawn out. The cheating was understandable. Here are two people CLEARLY meant to be together who have honestly LOVED each other since they were kids, in a sitation where one of them is attached. It sucks. And they gave what they had between them a go and ended up telling Will within a few days of starting so there wasn’t this huge big long cheating time. Yes, it was messy. My heart was in utter turmoil. Yes, my heart hurt for Will. But there was just no denying how right Jake and True felt together. They were truely each other’s soul mates.

“You’re mine, Tru. I’m not sharing you with him anymore.“

And this isn’t a book about cheating. Its a story about a childhood love that never truely went away throughout years of separation, and how, once reunited, nothing will be able to keep them apart. The cheating thing gets resolved quickly and then after that its just about Jake and Tru.

So, now, back to Jake *pauses a moment to SWOON*… Jake Wethers, perhaps the sweetest and hottest rock god to grace this earth. I haven’t had my heart this much a-flutter since Kellan and Gideon. Let me tell you, I was hyperventilating and swooning to the MAX. What is it about rock stars that is just so. Freaking. THRILLING?!

The chemistry between Jake and Tru… oh dear lord *fans self*, it sizzles. You can feel it come right off the page. Totally undiable. Totally INTENSE. From the start, you can just FEEL that its ‘right’ between them. And the intensity between them just slowly builds from their first meeting to the point where it just couldn’t be held back any more. Made you feel for them that much more strongly.

The book is steamy – very steamy, but not erotica steamy. Its there, but not overpowering. Personally, I thought it was just the right amount for this story.

Once Jake and Tru were together, yes, they fought, yes, they had their moments of stupid, but c’mon, who doesn’t? Personally, despite reading some of the scenes and just going “FUUUUUUUUCCCKKKKKK”, I didn’t find that the drama overshadowed the story, but rather brought it a sense of realism. They have a lot to deal with – paparazi, public image, various things that happen in their private life… and so naturally, it affects them. But they do work through their issues… and them together just utterly melted my heart *dreamy sigh*

The pacing of the book was mostly excellent. But if I had to complain, I’d say that there were a few scenes that were alluded to, but skipped over in detail that I’d really have wished to read in full. The time jumps are a little jolting, making you momentarily disconnect from the story line, but it quickly picks up again and didn’t take away from my overall reading experience.

This book deals with a lot of serious issues – drugs, cheating, death, commitment, the effects of fame. But its a romance at heart… and an abolutely beautiful one at that.

The ending was a totally swoony HEA but was a little abrupt. I loved it, but… I WANT MORE!!!! NOW!! Please?! Ms. Towle, pretty please????!! *begs*

oooo and we are treated at the end of the book to one chapter from Jake’s POV. Its the scene where they meet for the first time and can I just say that that might actually be the BEST guy POV I’ve ever read. You got RIGHT into his head. Literally every thought. It was BRILLIANT. I hear rumours that there will be more of his POV in the sequel so…. *SQUEEEEEEE*

If you are looking for a rockstar romance that will totally take over your heart, try this one out!

Also, if you liked this book, you will most likely love Thoughtless, and vice versa… if you are a big fan of Thoughtless, RUN out and get yourself this book. Cuz… just WOW!! 😀

Jake Wethers… you are my rock god <3

READING ORDER

#1 The Mighty Storm
Kindle | Paperback

#2 Wethering The Storm
Kindle | Paperback

CASTING:

I found a picture of this guy that looks EXACTLY like how Jake was described in the books (just add blue contacts and tattoo him up a bit in your minds :P). What do you guys think? Is he HOT or what?

Enter the Aestas Book Database