DNF @ 21% but skipped pages to find out what h's big secret was.
Lacked S chem/emo/romance. Telling My 2nd book by this author and this is it for me.
DNF @ 21% but skipped pages to find out what h's big secret was.
Lacked S chem/emo/romance. Telling with no showing.
Quickly went from no chemistry or any relationship really (they didn't even talk or share some kind of non-verbal understanding since H was mostly out of the house working) to suddenly having sex, after their 1st dining experience out. The next chapter summarized their being together for 1 year now and H proposes. Skips 1 or 2 years later in the next chapter (chapter 8), with both lovey-dovey with each other and H pampering her with his rich lifestyle and insisting she not work.
**SPOILERS** There's no emotional or romantic development. We're just told the status of their relationship. @25% by chapter 10, about 5 years have gone by and H suddenly slaps her, after she lets the waiter help wipe off some spill on her dress when she & H were dining out. H all of sudden becomes this jealous-possessive psycopath. Skipping more--h runs back home later and H abducts her and rapes her with his now full-blown psycopathy. So glad I skipped & didn’t read through this. Not going to read the rest of this series.
No emotional connection but mostly focused on H financial pampering of h without any explanation of why. Lots of repeated teasers all through the book of h trying to forget her traumatic meeting with H. Which is basically H saving her after she may have killed a man, who may be her client. Since this book cliffhangered @ the big reveal that h worked as a prostitute. That wasn't surprising....more
More lust-based with a side of mental game-playing. Romance was meh. Characters were roughly-hewn. Lacked emotional i**SPOILERS under Sexual History**
More lust-based with a side of mental game-playing. Romance was meh. Characters were roughly-hewn. Lacked emotional involvement. As a result, what sounded like it would be sexy and romantic ended up not being so. Such as:
#1. H may be stalker-obsessed with h BUT he ended up just acting/acting like a creep. Even h kept telling him he was being "creepy" and asking if he just had a thing for young girls. His sexual demands of h could've been sexier but the lack of emotional-sexual chemistry just them sound rough and kinky. But h's response to him was a big part of why this was so.
#2. h said "yes" to all of H's demands BUT she liked the "hot" teen guy (OM) at her school more h's was too emotionally-distant from H for most of the book except for sex. She was into H when it came to sex but didn't really like him unlike OM. Even when she found out OM was a drug-dealer after % 60% mark, she still seemed more comfortable and vulnerable with him than with H. She even wished that she met OM, after she was done with her secret affair with H after she was done with her class with him. Things only changed for her when she met H's large Italian family since having a family was important to her.
#3. many potentially-dramatic info BUT most skipped re: how it affected h and/or H Lots of dramatic teasers from just being mentioned (i.e., h's stalker @ age 13, h's wildness @ age 13, H being an undercover narc, how h's mom's death 1.5 years ago affected her & her sister, what situations made her sister moved them to 3 different CA towns in the last year) but no follow-through. So, caused major plotholes, under-developed characters, and emotional shallowness.
Sexual History: 18yo h had BFs before 28yo H. No info on how many lovers she’d had but that they were in her age group and that she started being “wild” @ age 13. Her being wild included smoking pot, skipping class, and underage drinking. She had stalkers before H, including a serious stalker @ age 13 which ended up in court. But no other info aside from that. No info on how long she’d been celibate since H. But she did mention how 1 month ago she didn’t have anyone interested in her and then now she had H and OM vying for her. She seemed to “like” h.s.-senior OM since he was nice and attractive. But she kept giving in to H’s sexual demands and threats.
28yo H wanted h @ 1st sight and got her to have sex with him their 2nd day of tutoring. No info on his previous Gfs or lovers, except for his mom telling h that he’s never brought any other girl to their family restaurant until h....more
Glad I read this 6-series book in its whole-book format coz I don't like cliffhanger endings.
A good read because it: **SPOILERS under Sexual History**
Glad I read this 6-series book in its whole-book format coz I don't like cliffhanger endings.
A good read because it: #1. was unpredictable and well-paced It started with a fun & sexy challenge to get h to agree to sign H’s dom-sub hush-contract (NDA) and became a deeper emotional connection as h’s past unraveled later. The addition of the mystery-suspense of h’s kidnapping past & how she got kidnapped again by the same man towards the end provided some unpredictability and kept my interest overall.
#2. was emotional involving with good sexual tension Funny, sexy, and had some angsty moments too. Hot detailed bareback S scenes but wished that h discussed condom-use before smexxing H coz he knew about her birth-control but she didn’t know about his sex-safety.
#3. had likable chars and good character development Liked h’s combo of sass and caution/sexy online Tweets but tight-lipped in person/realistic yet liked to fantasize. Also liked her candid introspection and ability to laugh and let go of her issues once she’s figured things out. Her character growth came from having major denial issues re: being kidnapped & brainwashed for 8 months by her family’s unknown masked killer as a kid.
Liked H’s mix of kinky controlling lover and his kindness/generosity with his family. His character growth was linked to their romance progress. At first, he tried to control h like he did with his other subs. But became deeply in love with h, despite her emotionally distancing from him. Love how he persisted with her--unwilling to take her rejections of his love and her self-denials re: her traumatic past.
Sexual History: 23yo h was celibate for 8 months before she and H 1st smexxed. She’s had casual lovers since high school or college. But no emotional attachments and no desire to get married due to her traumatic past (She was abducted when she was 13 by a masked stranger, after he shot her parents and brother in their farm home. He mostly kept her in a closet for 8 months and brainwashed her to eventually believe that she was his wife and belonged to him and would get rewarded some freedoms (i.e., be out of the closet, able to talk to him) if she obeyed his demands. He never touched her sexually but let it be known that he was going to sexually claim her when she’s legal age. She was upset when he suddenly freed her 1 day and wouldn’t talk to anybody for weeks after she was rescued.).
32yo H has a voracious sex appetite and likes to have various submissives, whom he requires to sign a NDA to protect his actor image. Many are 1-time only and others are longer but always ends their dom-sub relationship when he tires of them. He’s had 15 subs within the past 4 years. He never takes them on a public date. Public dates are reserved for his public girlfriends who he never sleeps with since they’re strictly business-only set up by his manager. He’s only had 2 real girlfriends ever—1 with his Disney teen-movie co-star when he was 16 and the other with a party girl he broke up with when he was 18....more
I thought I wouldn't like 20yo college track-star h as much (due to her irascible & aggressive **SPOILERS under Sexual History**
What a wishy-washy H!
I thought I wouldn't like 20yo college track-star h as much (due to her irascible & aggressive tough-talking exterior). But she was more mature and more responsible than her mid-20s coach H. H seemed like a nice guy but he was actually quite passive-aggressive. He swung between pleasing others (i.e., his dead father, his mom, his GF, his head coach, school officials) and resenting them for their expectations/demands on him. He couldn't make up his mind and made it sound like he was self-sacrificial in the choices he was considering. When really he was just a hot-looking wimp! He didn't want to make adult decisions so he ran away, backed away, lied, and deceived others instead. It took him a very long time to break up from his GF (who he wasn’t in love with and who he’d been clear about not marrying) for really no reason than resentfully following what his dead father wished for him. So, he lied to her re: h who he led on by acting jealous and possessive when he’d see her with another guy.
Meh romance/romance dev/emotions. Lacked angst that should've been there due to the story but H’s flip-flopping got in the way. Sex scenes were hot but didn’t like that h just let H smex her bareback without detailed info if he practiced safe sex with his recent ex-GF and when last he smexxed his ex.
Sexual History: 20yo h only had sex with guys when she wanted to “hook up”. She's never been on a date since she doesn’t think any guy would actually like her due to her tough irascible exterior and distant demeanor. No info on when she started having sex but she was pretty much on her own since she was a pre-teen due to her grandma’s increasing Alzheimers. She was on birth control but no info if she always uses condoms with her hookups or if H was her 1st bareback experience.
H had GFs since dating was a big thing for him. He’d been dating his GF of 1 year since his drunken bout of sex with her at a party 1 night soon after his father passed away. He wasn’t interested in his GF until the guilt of his father’s unexpected death coz his dad wished for him to date her. No info re: when H stopped refusing sex with his GF when he met h. He did spend the night at her place a few times during the 2-3 month period since meeting h and having her stay at his mom’s place....more
Such funny sex scenes! This is my 2nd Huss read (I count her Bully King duet as 1 complete read). So far, she seems to write awkward-funny romance betSuch funny sex scenes! This is my 2nd Huss read (I count her Bully King duet as 1 complete read). So far, she seems to write awkward-funny romance better than NA/teen bully romance.
The GOOD: #1. H&h's banter & interactions were humorous. Especially their sex scenes (i.e., h trying to remember BJ sex-tips while BJ-ing H, H’s peen accidentally poking h on her naked butt, h’s wide-mouth orgasm turns to a hacking cough due to swallowing rainwater). Helped with the book's pacing and S chemistry.
#2. Likable chars Overall, I liked buxomy sexy but awkward & chatty 26/27yo social-media asst h and her new neighbor & boss’ BFF casual artist and app-creator 27yo H. They're both nice, friendly, and well-meaning people. They were also both on the geeky-nerdy side of sexy, which I found different and refreshing.
MEH or the BAD: #1. Average romance & rom development.
#2. H’s California-speak In the 1st few pages, his CA-surfer lingo (i.e., “stoked”, “dude”, and “y’know”) was off-putting & frequent. But soon improved as he spoke it less and his caring and flirty-sexy side came out.
#3. disliked h repeatedly lying to H re: being the Sexpert vlogger She chose to keep lying to H, even though he gave her many outs and offers of help from possible name-patent lawsuit from her boss/his BFF and her reasons to keep lying to him @ the end were weak and her apology was lame, she needed to grovel to H but he ended up apologizing more when it was completely her fault since he’d been honest and supportive of her.
Sexual History: No info on how many previous BFs and lovers h had before H, except that her last lover was a 1-time lover who she didn’t hear from again after she finally “put out” for him. No detail on how long ago that was.
27yo H was celibate for awhile but no specific time on how many months that’s been. He didn’t seem to do ONS and was a serial monogamist but chose “mean” women like his mom. His last lover was his ex-fiance who he was with for 3 years and found himself agreeing to her marriage proposal due to being used to her until she broke it off when she confessed on cheating on him....more
Skimmed this also since the same lack of focus and emotional/romantic substance as Book1.
But I wanted to know exactl**SPOILERS under Sexual History**
Skimmed this also since the same lack of focus and emotional/romantic substance as Book1.
But I wanted to know exactly what happened to h and H and his friends 3 years ago. This book had even more characters than Book1 and the crazy cult-like features of their elite school structure became apparent (i.e., rites, sex rituals, initations). It became this BDSM-y secret cult book. It was devoid of romance/emotion/sexual tension. It didn't even give any hot sex description from their 4-some 3 years ago. Not even that! The only redeeming part is that H owned up to his stupidity and selfishness to encourage h to get an abortion and then immediately cruelly reject her from his life, after her abortion procedure. He did show that h mattered to him more now. But the busy-ness of all the cult stuff and h’s switching from being a poor victim to this special-Maiden got in the way. It's a fictional mess. HFN at best.
Sexual History: No info on who and how many lovers h had by the time she was 15 and starting smexxing 18yo h.s.-senior H and his friends. They started out bullying h to do their homework and then watching/stalking her to touching to eventually smexxing in about a 6-month span. She considered them as becoming her “best friends” that year until H ended things. Not sure if they ever all smexxed her at the same time. H liked to watch her being touched and kissed by his 2 BFFs but felt jealous about it. However, he never stopped his friends from touching/smexxing her. Things ended after h was raped by H’s older brother and she got pregnant. No clear info on whether condoms or birth control was used at all at that time by them. When she told h about her pregnancy, H gave her the option re; abortion and she agreed. After he drove her back from the abortion clinic, he ended his relationship with h. He deliberately discouraged h from pressing charges against his rapist brother because he wanted to use the rape info to blackmail his bro later. h went back to just hanging out with her parents after that until her mom died and H’s father proposed for her to go to their college with a scholarship and gave her money. When she reconnected with H again 3 years later, she BJ-ed H publicly and let him touch her publicly too. She also let some of the guys in their initiation group kiss and touch/suck her boobs until H’s friend put a stop to it.
21yo H was a manho but no details on previous girlfriends or lovers. When he started talking to h again 3 years later, he made sure that h could her him kiss his faux-girlfriend and finger her outside her door. However, his faux-girlfriend was a lesbian but not sure why she let him kiss and finger her and she seemed to like it, unless it was just an act. But they didn’t talk about it prior to him just suddenly kissing and touching her by h’s bedroom door. When he and h started smexxing again in current time, no condoms were used and no birth control mentioned. Don't think H was celibate for any length of time before h and he started smexxing since he was a self-professed partier....more
My advice: Just skim up to 85% of this book (Book1). But read the last 15%.
This is my 1st J.A. Hu**Sexual History SPOILERS is on my review of Book2 **
My advice: Just skim up to 85% of this book (Book1). But read the last 15%.
This is my 1st J.A. Huss book and I hope her other books read better than this. Because this book:
#1. lacked substance It's a full-length book plus a 2nd book to complete this Duet. So, it has lots of details about going-ons in the school and the different characters involved. BUT it sorely lacked focus and details of significant information re: 18yo gardener’s daughter h and 21yo elite-college senior H’s past romance/relationship and their current one and exactly how H’s 2 male BFFs were involved. Significant details from 3 years ago glossed over (i.e., h’s 4-some with H and his friends when she was only 15yo and they 18, how their r/s progressed from non-existing to bullying ad stalking to smexxing then to nothing for 3 years despite them being in the same school location). Lots of head-scratching from me. And that's never a good sign.
#2. lacked emotion and romance Everything felt even-keeled, even when the details were sad, upsetting, or shocking. It wasn't h's numbness to her mom's sudden death 2 weeks earlier. I can handle numb but I have to understand it and feel why she's numb from grief. So many things in this book were glossed-over. Including h's abortion 3 years ago. Even after reading the details of it in Book2, there was still a lack of emotion over it (i.e., was that a hard decision for her? did she regret it? did she feel guilty over it or glad? was she more upset about getting an abortion or H leaving her after?). I still don't know.
#3. Lots of telling and not showing. And the telling wasn’t consistent (i.e., h’s POV says that she liked being a loner to being socially dependent and needing social approval from the elite people @ the school, h and H hating and worse, disregarding each other for the past 3 years to suddenly being in love and what not).
#4. inconsistent characterization of h and H’ For example, h described as innocent and a shy loner who was sheltered via homeschooling by her parents. Then, we get some fuzzy details about her already being a non-virgin when she was 15yo, when she and H and his friends started making out and eventually smexxing. If she was homeschooled and only had her parents as her friends, who was/were her previous lover/lovers? How did she meet them, when her POV showed that she was a loner and didn't have friends? If also didn't make sense re: how comfortable she was with public sexual activities in front of strangers. She's supposedly shy and socially inexperienced before she 4-somed with H and his friends.
She was also described as a simple girl who didn’t aspire for wealth and fame yet that’s the very thing she ended up doing due to her lack of escaping the cult-like elite school when she had the freedom to do so for and was consistently encouraged to do so (even given $200+k to do as she wished). Instead, she allowed herself to be humiliated by literally made to kiss H and others’ toes and crawl around and be sexually touched by others based on the elite-students’ orders. It just didn’t make sense why she stayed and subjected herself to all of that, when her POV and such showed that she was sick of being bullied and didn’t like the students and hierarchical structure there and could’ve freely moved anywhere.
At least, H’s character as an irresponsible/selfish/immature and mostly-clueless bully was consistent. But I can't take 21yo H seriously since he still acts like a spoiled teen and says things like "As if!", like Cher in the teen movie "Clueless". They both acted immature 3 years ago when they were younger teens. And they continued to act immature while playing adult games as young adults....more
If not for H's love for her, this would be a chick-lit book.
Wasted time showing and prolonging 29yo h’s imm2.5-star **SPOILERS under Sexual History**
If not for H's love for her, this would be a chick-lit book.
Wasted time showing and prolonging 29yo h’s immaturity and social-climbing in Hollywood. Pages would've been better spent on her romance with 30s investor H.
First 70% of book: Read more like chick-lit re: h’s crazy life between being a new physician and living a high-life in Hollywood. About 70% of the book was about h’s spending habits/promiscuous life with various rich and famous men/reality-TV watching/junk-food eating/self-sabotaging her life. Her career as a new physician and 8 years of medical school seemed very unbelievable, given her high living, frequent drunkeness, and spontaneous trips to Cabo/etc. Her time spent at residency seemed to be highlighted by gossiping with the medical staff.
Last 20-30%: Only around 80% that we’re given details of how they got married in Vegas and why he chose to marry her. These details should’ve been given way earlier or at least segments of them dropped here and there from 15% of the book onwards.
What made this book palatable and why I kept reading was because of H. How somebody serious and responsible like him would fall for this h, given how she kept pushing him away and diminished his value whether as a drunken-marriage husband or father of her child. She swung from rejecting H and accusing him of trying to control her like her parents and stepmom did and then wishing he stayed with her, when she just told him to leave her alone.
Around 80%, we really see how H's patience and love for h impacted their romance and her character growth. h begins to change due to H’s unconditional love and support of her. Without that, h would remain a wild promiscuous teenager in a 29yo body. h wasn’t that unlikable but she was just emotionally-stunted and confused. She was trying to please her dead mom, distant father, and critical stepmother and sabotaged her life to try to please such different people. She was a hot mess! And only H’s presence and love for her stabilized her. Having an accidental baby just helped speed things along.
Aside from H, the only other good in this book was the hot detailed sex scenes. But, again, it was due to H’s intensity for h.
Sexual History: 29yo h was a player who boasted about her many sexual conquests with millionaires, athletes, musicians, and hot men. She was aggressive and open about her sexual history and interest. She was aiming to have sex with her friend’s rockstar brother but ended up having sex and then later marrying H in Vegas while she was drunk. She had very little recollection about that night she married H. H had to re-enact it @ the end @ the location he proposed to her 1 year before and give her all the details (most of which she didn’t remember still) of how they went from insulting each other @ a party in LA to getting married in Vegas hours later.
No info on 30s investor H’s sex history except for him dating a woman who was serious and responsible like him. But he broke it off with her after he 1st talked to h on the phone since he became smitten with h since. Both H and h became celibate and sober after their drunken wedding night together in Vegas. When h was about 7 months preggo, H and h’s celibacy ended when they smexxed each other again....more
Funny and romantic with a secretly-obsessed manwhore Hero.
#1. I loved how H loved her: a.) how he fell in lo4.5-star **SPOILERS under Sexual History**
Funny and romantic with a secretly-obsessed manwhore Hero.
#1. I loved how H loved her: a.) how he fell in love with h's character. It wasn't lust-centered, although their sex chemistry was obvious.
b.) how secretly obsessed he was with her @ 1st sight. But couldn’t act on it due to her friend’s warning re: her current life situation.
c.) his somewhat-secretive jealous-possessiveness over her so he showed up on her date with OM and joined them the whole time,
d.) how he made time for her to do things she liked to do without her knowing that he was doing it just to spend time with her.
#2. Good romance/rom dev and emotion with bits of angst and humor. Some LOL-snickering moments due to h’s wit and snark.
#3. Likable chars with good char dev. Loved h’s char with her combo of realism and hope/frankness and secrecy/sexiness and sweetness/kindness and limit-setting. Loved how she handled life crises with practicality and general good attitude.
Loved how usually-controlled and -distant manwhore H became celibate and vulnerable with h because she mattered more and more to him. And, as used to sexual sharing as he was, he was adamant about not wanting to ever sexually-share h, whether it be with another man or woman.
Sexual History: 25yo temp-PA h had 2 lovers before H. Her 1st lover was her BF since high school who she was with for 10 years (lived with him in college and moved to LA from NYC with him for his acting career). Her 2nd lover was a ONS with her ex-BF’s friend as revenge sex and then ghosted him after. H was her 3rd lover and her first received-oral.
Popular 30s British plastic-surgeon H had some previous Gfs including his last GF who he was with for a couple years and who he was kinda engaged to when he agreed with her that it was “time” for them to be engaged when she dragged him to a jewelry store for an engagement ring. However, she cheated on him with his father when he was on a business trip and told him their relationship wouldn’t have worked out anyway since H didn’t have enough love for her since he only loved himself. She ended up marrying H’s father and having a daughter with him. After their breakup, H became a manwhore who smexxed a woman once with full disclosure of sex-only and then moved to the next. In the first week or so when h became his temporary PA, she had to shoo about 4 women out of his bedroom at different times except for the 2 women he had a 3some with one night. He became celibate for the next 2 months, after the 3some since he became only interested in h....more
Originally, a 2-star. But downgraded to a 1.5-star, after reading its original 2014 version (Bloom).
Skimmed from 13% til the end coz boring & predictOriginally, a 2-star. But downgraded to a 1.5-star, after reading its original 2014 version (Bloom).
Skimmed from 13% til the end coz boring & predictable.
#1. Lacked emotion and was stilted Showed no continuity of how h could claim that she'd always thought of H and been crushing on him since childhood yet she had a college BF she was really into and had good sex with until they broke up just weeks prior to seeing H again. Transition not smooth.
#2. Shallow two-dimensional characters Both 25yo law-student H and 19yo freshman intern h were immature and spoiled. They were both still financially-tied to their parents’ purse strings. So, struggled with being told what career/major to have as as result. Quite a bit of content re: their iffy career goals. But the central character focus was on H&h's sexy good looks and their uber-confidence from knowing they were attractive to others.
They're into the typical college scene of partying, drinking, and hooking up. That’s why it didn’t make sense that H was stressing about h being 6 years younger than him since she’s in college like him and interning like him and has quite a bit of life experiences already.
#3. Lust-focused and lacked touching romance Sexual tension was good due to their resisting their attraction while living in the same house and working the same bar. But too much focus on body parts (i.e., h's boobs, h's figure from her sexy clothes, H's muscles). Very meh romance and emotion so neither characters seemed truly into each other despite what some of their POV stated.
#.4 lacked emotional depth
Sexual History: 19yo freshman h celibate for 6 weeks since breaking up with her musician ex-BF coz he couldn’t guarantee to stay faithful to her when he was on tour. She let her ex-BF visit her @ her BFF’s & H’s house and let him kiss her neck and worried that she may smex him if she sees him perform with his band coz that usually turns her on (“You’ll change your mind after you see me play,” he says .He’s right. I already know this. His hands are still on my hips, his mouth on my neck, and I know that seeing him play is all it would take to sway me.“). No other info on how many other previous lovers h had but her ex-BF taught her sexual things and they both seemed quite sexually active together.
H celibate for 2 months since he 1st broke up with his GF who wanted him to wait a few weeks to give their relationship a chance. But when she came to visit H, he told her they were completely done & turned down her sex offer and he slept on the floor in his room while she slept in his bed....more
The revision (renamed No One But Us (NOBUs)) was unnecessary and made things worse, including a less clear Why was this book even revised in 2018?!
The revision (renamed No One But Us (NOBUs)) was unnecessary and made things worse, including a less clear Sexual History than in this book (SPOILERS below).
Compared to NOBUs, this book:
1. had better characterization and more likable characters This H and h were nicer and more relatable than NOBUs version. It made the H&h of NOBUs sound like shallow jerks. This h was more awkward and more reserved in general and wasn’t so looks-conscious as the NOBUs h. This H was more a mix of quiet confidence with some insecurities and avoidance tendencies yet kinder and more emotional vulnerable later than the more arrogant and colder H in NOBUs. They also behaved more like college-aged people, with their uncertainty and insecurities and avoidant behaviors. While in NOBUs, H and h's insecurities were very much tied to their looks and fear of not being financed by their wealthy parents.
Even their parents were better written here. Versus the two-dimensional villainous characters they were in NOBUs. This book showed their parents somewhat improving towards the end instead of staying materialistic and shallow in NOBUs.
2. had better dialogue and story transition Gave more details/description that helped explains the timeline of H’s breakup with his ex-GF and h’s breakup with her ex-BF and why than in NOBUs.
3. was more romance-based and more emotional depth
4. was less repetitive re: H thinking h is so much younger than him and h's sexy looks
Sexual History: 19yo college sophomore h was with her rocker college-student ex-BF for less than 1 year from the start of her freshman year until the next summer since he couldn’t promise to be faithful while on his summer tour. Doesn’t sound like her ex-BF was her first lover but he did teach her some sexual tricks including giving good BJs . h was celibate for about 6 weeks when she started hooking up with H.
It took them a couple weeks or so before H finally smexxed h coz:
#1.) he was “embarrassed” re: their 6-yr age difference since she’s still not regarded as an adult at age 19 #2.) he didn’t want her to miss out on her college experience during the 3 years she still had left in college #3.) he wasn’t sure if a long-distance relationship will work between them so:
@60% H&h now secretly dating and making out (hand-holding, boobs, oral) but H still won’t smex h coz still still thinks h is too young/not an adult yet
@72% they finally smex after h’s ex-BF serenaded her at his concert to get her back but h rejected him
25yo law student H broke up with his GF of 1 year(?) about 1 month before seeing h again. He was adamant about not reuniting with his ex-GF and realized that he only dated her to please his family. No info of H's past lovers/GF and if he dated/smexxed anyone else since his breakup with his ex. He did say that he was celibate since seeing h again....more
What happened Lauren Rowe? These main characters are pathetic!
DNF @ 68% but started skimming by 9% coz:
1.) disliked both H a1.5-star ***SPOILERS***
What happened Lauren Rowe? These main characters are pathetic!
DNF @ 68% but started skimming by 9% coz:
1.) disliked both H and h Both 23yo production-asst h and 27yo drummer wanna-be actor H were 2nd-rate characters. Obvious that they were side-kicks of main characters from previous books.
I especially disliked h. She was a sycophant who indulged in self-pity and pandering for sympathy from others via telling stories about her awkward and unpopular childhood and why no one from the band crew hit on on her after her open confession re: her paltry sexual experience with her college boyfriend. She was so pathetic that she “thank(ed)” H for mistakenly believing that her rockstar boss would deign to have sex with her.
H was a hanger-on who was lucky enough to be included in a rock band, which later became popular. He had similar stories about being a nobody and chubby as a kid until he started drumming. Without his band, he wouldn't have made it. His current trial as an actor is due to his famous connections and not really because he's such a skilled actor. Even his sexual skills aren't inherent like the other Rowe heroes in this series, he's had to watch videos and study things online to learn how to please his ex-GF (who ended up dumping him before he could demonstrate the new sex toy he just bought for her after some online study of it).
2.) lacked romance and emotion h's feelings for H was 1-sided even up to 68%. Her feelings were immature and based on her childhood crush on him. She didn't seem to have difficulty jumping from her long crush on H to her college boyfriend. Her feelings for H didn't seem to be a factor in her quest in the last 9 months to get hit on by somebody/anybody in the band crew she worked with. When she blurted out ILY during sex with H, he backtracked after that. His mom had to talk to him to open up his eyes to a possible romantic relationship with h.
3.) sex chemistry was very meh. Sex scenes read more like a sex manual. Their sex chemistry was awkward, mostly because the attraction was mostly 1-sided and based on h's childhood crush on H. She chased after H and kept begging him him to smex her: ”Amy whimpers and babbles an incoherent string of words, before desperately gripping my forearm and whisper-shouting, “I’ve got a room upstairs! Take me there and give me an orgasm, so I know I’m not defective. Give me one, so I know the problem isn’t me.”
She would never have been under his radar if it wasn't for her now-grown-up boobs and his mom telling him that he MUST feel something for this h. I don't think he was THAT clueless. He just wasn't THAT into her. He put more effort into his ex-GF who he was with off and on for 5 years than with h. He seemed to be more hung up on another woman he dated (wanted to date?) if not for her choosing his friend instead. h was really a 2nd-best pick for him.
Sex scenes were unsexy to me. H approached sex with h like he had something to prove. He's not an alpha dominant Hero and it showed even in their sex scenes. Yeah, he made her orgasm but it seemed more technical than romantic or even smutty.
4.) dialogue was immature H and h’s dialogue was very immature-sounding with lots of name-dropping (h kept telling him about band members she worked with despite her Non-Disclosure Contract with them in order to keep H’s interest in their conversation). Lots of repetitions of “Swoon”/guffawing/giggling/squealing, not impressed with these two. I couldn't take them seriously. I kept wondering why Rowe would dedicate a whole book about these 2.
Sexual History: h had kissed other buys but was de-virginized by her 1-yr long BF in college who only did oral on her once and neither liked it. @26% H&h kiss the 1st time after h blurted out of nowhere that she’d never had an orgasm with her ex-BF and he took it as a challenge. @45% H&h smex with agreement that it’s a temporary thing to help h achieve O in sex. H was with his GF for 5 years before she dumped him. He did research to max out her pleasure and bought her sex toys but she dumped him anyway. @59% h blurts out ILY to H after her last massive O during the planned orgasm-fest he gave her.
No info on other lovers/GFs he had before his ex-GF. No info on lovers he's had after they broke up either. He did have a lot of fan offers to smex him but not sure if he ever took 1 up....more
#1. Unpredictable dramatic story/chars/romance. The drama is so OTT that chapter 1 was already brimming with it:
23yo divorced actress h ge
**SPOILERS**
#1. Unpredictable dramatic story/chars/romance. The drama is so OTT that chapter 1 was already brimming with it:
23yo divorced actress h gets an unwelcomed response by her stepbrother 31yo H to her unexpected visit to the family estate the night of his sister’s engagement to h’s ex-husband (whom she left 4 years ago after being only married to him for 8 months). h’s mom divorced her dad and married H’s dad when h was age 2 because h’s mom got pregnant from their secret affair. Thus, h is also a half-sister to H’s half-sister (SIS). When h was 7yo, she realized that their parents and H valued SIS much more than her and that she was just 2ndary to their family. So, h began to mask her true feelings from them since then.
#2. Good emo & S tension/pacing/drama.
#3. Both H&h were flawed characters, whose dysfunctions brought a lot of drama and realism in their romance. 1.) Both masked their true feelings and actions with flippancy/sarcasm/flirtatiousness. 2.) Lots of things including both H&h’s characters were edgy and questionable . I'm still not sure if I really like either of them much. 3.) They both misunderstood each other and kept secrets, making big mistakes as a result (i.e., h married her ex-husband coz she thought H hated her, H left abroad for years after he kissed her when she was 16 to control his feelings for her). 4.) Both played mental-emotional games with each other and sometimes used sexual seduction to get answers from each other or to 1-up each other. 5.) They were better as a couple than they were as flawed individuals.
#4. H was a judgmental jerk who accused h of being a promiscuous and money-grabbing seductress like her mother/his stepmother.
#5. Ending was good since all big secrets were finally revealed and their ILYs finally said. Potential HEA.
Sexual History: h's stepbrother 31yo H was 23yo h’s 2nd lover. Her only other lover was her ex-husband (who she married 4 years before and who beat her up) partially due to her sexual non-responsiveness with him. Very possible that h may have been raped by her ex-husband since he got off on hurting her, especially since he believed that h had feelings for her stepbrother H. When h left & then divorced her ex-husband, she dated quite a few men but none affected her sexually like H did that only day they kissed when she was 16yo.
31yo H was a known player since he became a teen. Even h’s mom made a few plays towards H but he rejected her advances. Not sure how quick he rejected h’s mom and if it was all the time. When he kissed 16yo h, he was basically cheating on his steady GF at that time with h. He had several GFs but no one he was close to marriage....more
Meh for a Madison Faye novella. Lacked romance and emotion.
Lust-based attraction but distant, with both just fantasizing about each other with neitheMeh for a Madison Faye novella. Lacked romance and emotion.
Lust-based attraction but distant, with both just fantasizing about each other with neither really attempting to make a move. It changed 1 day, when h caught her yoga-instructor H self-pleasuring @ the gym shower 1 night & heard him groan her name. She happened to fall off while secretly watching him with literally her hands in her pants from self-pleasuring. Then boom chicka wow wow...And that's pretty much it. Ending just hinted at them continuing a r/s but not sure if only for sex or actual dating.
The only good thing about this book are the hot detailed sex scenes that's Faye's specialty. Both h&H had previous lovers. Didn't care that h was the chaser. Don't think H would've pursued her....more
2.) H and h lacked romance and emotional chemistry.
3.) Even the**SPOILERS under Sexual History**
DNF @ 24% coz a mess of:
1.) contrived romance/dialogue
2.) H and h lacked romance and emotional chemistry.
3.) Even the sex was awkward since jerk H would pull out as soon as he got his fill and would leave h unsatisfied. Yet he'd leave her some money and/or jewelry next to her body like she's the prostitutes he's used to.
4.) Still no clue why H had focused on h to be his wife and I didn’t care anymore at this point.
5.) Both H and h became less likable.
Sexual History: 24yo h not a virgin with h. She’s had other lovers including her last ex-BF she was with for 6 months.
30s(?) software-programmer H had never taken anyone out on a date until h. He frequented prostitutes while he lived and traveled around South Africa and Africa. Some of the prostitutes he saw for longer terms than 1-pay usual. With these longer term ones, he’d pamper (i.e., learn what makes them orgasm, shop with them at high-end stores). No info when he’d last slept with anyone before h....more
Good sexual tension & how it evolved in a few weeks time from working to fighting their attraction to romance. Likable chars--27yo ef**Some SPOILERS**
Good sexual tension & how it evolved in a few weeks time from working to fighting their attraction to romance. Likable chars--27yo efficient PA’s combo of quiet efficiency and insightful directness/sexy yet choosy/strong with good discernment and l36yo software biz H’s focused drive and grumpiness from being such a focused & smart workaholic that hid a broken heart due to his twin sister’s suicide 9 years ago. Liked that h knew what she was going into and wasn't complainy about things. Loved how H became so enamored by getting to know h’s character as his PA and as an attractive woman. Loved how H became uncharacteristically unfocused & unmotivated to work when he had to cruelly & publicly fire h right after their romantic time in Rome (when his nemesis & his twin’s ex-fiance appeared at work as part of his secret plan to bring OM down but didn’t want h to be targeted by him since he was her ex-boss who she worked for 5 years before she quit & started working for H months ago).
Sexual History: 27yo h had boyfriends before & was even casually dating a guy for a couple months before they broke it off due to her busy work schedule. No info if she slept with him or not. H’s last GF was 9 years ago before his twin’s death & only managed to have hookups a couple until he met h. After he 1st met h, he couldn’t muster any desire for any other women including his 2 regular hookups but pretended to still date them by having h send them gifts so h would think that he was dating others. But he soon told h about the fake dates whose gifts ended up going to his younger sister’s business adresses. During the 1 month H&h were apart after he fired her, neither dated anyone else coz both were heartbroken & missing each other....more
2.5-star **SPOILERS** Good writing overall but for the iffy HEA/romance at the end.
The GOOD: #1. Unpredictable drama & good emotionality made for good 2.5-star **SPOILERS** Good writing overall but for the iffy HEA/romance at the end.
The GOOD: #1. Unpredictable drama & good emotionality made for good pacing: *@5% H&h’s rom immediately established & set but h had to confess about having a fiance/@28% H stalks h at her house & rapes her *@30% h wakes up @ hospital with amnesia from her fall after her father came home & witnesses her nakedly falling from the stairs after she &H got done smexxing from the partial rape *@55% h sees H again & immediately gets her memory back but he thinks she lied & blackmails her to marry him or else risk her reputation & thereby hurting her crippled fiance who H knows she still cares for.
#2. Good characterization with depth that showed h&H's dysfunctions.
#3. Good sexual tension.
#4. Good emotionality & pacing.
The BAD: #1. Poor character development since h stayed kinda weak at the end & H became more unlikable. At the end, H was still unforgiving & vengeful so their HEA is iffy. Their romance was unresolved, although H&h did seem to love each other. Wished their epilogue showed H&h 1 or more years later being better together and H being as soft & loving as he was with h in the beginning of the book.
#2. Didn’t like how forceful & rape-y 36yo journalist H was.
#3. h cheated on her partially-paralyzed fiance of 2 years with H during the week they met at a convention together. h didn’t’ tell H until he came on to her & kissed her at their last convention day that she had a fiance, even though she already realized she had fallen for H.
#4. Characters weren't that likable mostly due to their dyfunctions (i.e., h with her passive-aggressiveness from falling out of love with her nice fiance (OM) and wanting more than him as both had changed in 2 years since OM's accident but yet sticking around with him & his family due to her people-pleasing tendencies & overall niceness, H with his self-absorbed and vengeful ways brought on from his life as a loner and a successful journalist in a cut-throat journalist industry).
#5. ok sex scenes since didn’t like how H raped h and put the blame on her more than taking responsibility for his actions yet excused them as his loving her
Sexual History: 23yo h was probably not a virgin since she was in love with her fiance (OM) whom she dated for 1 year before he proposed 2 years ago. She’d been celibate for 2 years since OM’s car accident. When she 1st smexxed with H, she said she was hurt but not sure if it was coz he smexxed her too roughly or when she wasn’t ready or if she was a virgin with him. Likely from H forcing himself on her before she was ready although she did end up reciprocating his S advances later. No other info of h’s dating life. H was known to be popular with women & he seemed to have a penchant for blondes like h. No info if he had any previous Gfs....more
NOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
1. believable romance of dark characters for a GlinesNOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
1. believable romance of dark characters for a Glines book. Twisted/dysfunctional/& promiscuous mid-20s mean-girl socialite h is secretly stalked by 30s mysterious grim & commanding secret-FBI-type-leader & known-cold-killer H. He'd been watching her from multiple hidden video cameras, including 1 in her bedroom and even shower. He began staging for her to fall for 1 of their secret-agents (OM) so she can spill info about 1 of her past lovers, who's a mafia leader & known pedophile sex-trafficker. But he ends up not sticking with the plan as he falls deeper for her
Loved how H became OTT alpha demanding-possessive & secretly-obsessed with h, although it didn't start out that way. In the 1st 50%, he forced OM to woo h back again. Even risking her falling for OM again & smexxing him. But H got jealous & “punished” her for letting OM kiss her after her 1st date with OM. Their romance development was complicated, fun, and real. Loved that h deliberately tried to get herself preggo with H at their 2nd Vegas affair. H knew about it coz he saw her birth control pills in her hotel-room trash. He viewed that as proof of her love & his way out of his secret-FBI leadership. Believable HEA.
2.) mean girl becomes likable Loved h's char development from being mean/cold-hearted/& manipulative in previous books in the series to becoming calmer/more of a homebody/& openly wanting the love of husband and kids like her other siblings. She became likable and H's love for her was understandable. However, in the 1st 50% of the book, some of h's dialogue & actions were not consistent with how mean/thoughtless/& impulsive she was in previous books.
3. good & sometimes funny weaving of the (sorta) love-triangle Great writing in how it weaves h's love triangle between H & secret-agent OM. H planned to stop his Vegas-weekend tryst with h by paying a showgirl to publicly claim that he got her preggo (He actually never slept with her ever). It was his setup to have h meet his teammate OM, who was coaching to get back in h's good graces via written notes about what made h beautiful & wining & dining her at her secret-garden spot with all her fave foods & wine.
It was funny how she became so annoyed with OM & would be frank with him about it coz she knew at that point that she only wanted H, even when he rejected her for the showgirl. Nor did it it stop her from going back to Vegas to hopefully see him again. Funny too with OM's POV re: his kinda-love for h but couldn't stop smexxing random OW per his usual & h knew about it coz of his reputation for smexxing many waitresses in restrooms & his disgust at h's fave food like olives while pleased that H would know how to get to h while hating him for being so controlling. It seemed fitting that OM was staged to be killed at the end, including a funeral with family & h & others so that he can then take H's place as the underground FBI-type leader. ...more
NOTE: I cheated & read the last book 1st. I'm not sure if I'll ever read the 1st 2. Not Safe.
I heard such good **Major SPOILERS under Sexual History**
NOTE: I cheated & read the last book 1st. I'm not sure if I'll ever read the 1st 2. Not Safe.
I heard such good things about the 1st 2 books of the series (Satan's Affair(the Prequel) & Haunting Adeline(Book1)) from other reviewers. But some very disappointing things about this final book. I hate it when my hopes are up for H&h in a romance series. Only for it to take a downturn later. Since I wasn't invested in the couple or the characters yet, I wanted spoilers of the end first. Such as: 1.) What exactly to kidnapped h? 2.) Was the romance in this last book truly just mostly sex between H&H?
The answers are: 1.) h was raped multiple times by her abductors 2.) No, there was more romance development between H&h than sex scenes in this book. For details, read below.
I liked how H was consistent with his alpha-dominant obsessive-possessive love for h & how he searched the depths to find her & kill all who got her kidnapped & molested. Found it un-necessary to prove H's love for her and show h's character growth as strong & dark by having her gang-raped & cut up during her 2-month kidnapping. But things sex-trafficking does happen. It's just hard to read it. Especially when a couple were happy and in love before the kidnapping. I just don't think I can read the earlier books, knowing what will happen to h later. Too heartbreaking.
But I did appreciate how the romance was shown to grow from such a tragedy. I also liked how h's innate sassy grit still shone through in the midst of being traumatized as seen in her 1-pager secret diary that she'd write during her captivity. Overall good writing. Good psychological & romantic depth. Believable romance & HEA.
Sexual History in Book2 ONLY: @19% kidnapped h's 1st rape by the brother of her female trainer (Francesca)
@25% h beaten badly by her trainer for supposedly ruining her shoes (h was setup by a crazy co-abductee) & then shoved her high-heeled shoe nside h's butt. Later, trainer's bro & other henchmen shoved different things inside h's butt & gang-banged her & the 3 other new abductees that night. 3 days h's butt still hurting that even merely farting hurts.
@30% h & other 5 girls are forced to wear skanky clothes while being hunted down like prey ala Hunger Games-style by 5 rich pervy guys
@35% It's been 2 months & h has been unofficially claimed by sadistic OM (Xavier) who's allowed to smex her 1x a week in the past month before the auction in 3 weeks where he'll officially buy h. This OM cuts her skin while raping her & h felt even more broken when she orgasmed with him.
@43% h escapes from her captors after killing her psycho co-captive & is found by H who'd been desperately looking for her & buying all the girls @ slave auctions he attended hoping 1 of them was h
@50% 5 weeks later h is cocooned in H's well-protected house but won't let H touch her due to her PTSD & found out she has an STD/chlamydia when she got herself tested
@60+% h lets H kiss her & only lets him touch her while self-defense training with him & H patiently encouraging/supporting h's healing & a bit later allows him to touch her at her permission (i.e., hold the knife she was using like a dildo per his suggestion to orgasm, using a rose to intimately touch her & prick her)
@70% she BJs H & let him booby-smex her
@74% H&h revenge-hunts & kills h's former groomer & her main rapists
@75% h lets H lightly cut(with a glass piece) all her body-scar locations she got from being knife-cut by her now-dead sadistic rapist so H can replace her painful memories into pleasurable ones of him
@76% h finally smexxes H with clear intent that she's the 1 in control of their smexxing
@80% 3rd time they smex & 1st time h tells H ILY while she had him in handcuffs
@88% h breaks up with H coz she didn't want to keep endangering her parents' lives & he leaves then h minutes later chases after him with regret. He forgives her & shows her she'll never get rid of him. They smex.
From what I clued in from this book, neither h nor H were virgins when they 1st got together in Book1. No idea about either ones dating & sexual history before this book. H was celibate for a total 4-5 months since h was kidnapped for 2 months & then waited 2-3 more months after he rescued her to heal & trust him again....more
Immediate steamroll Just seconds after they bump into each other @3%, 32yo car-workshop owner H is already “mine”-claiming strange3.5-star **SPOILERS**
Immediate steamroll Just seconds after they bump into each other @3%, 32yo car-workshop owner H is already “mine”-claiming stranger, 24yo paralegal h. Then kissed her, after saying something like 3 words to her. He was so OTT cavemanish with h & so immediately sure that she was "the One". It was hilarious! Loved the romantic ridiculousness of his insta-love for her and her reactions to him. She was understandably shocked by his instant intensity & runs away from him to her new office to report his assault of her. Due to his family's legendary insta-love history in their Montana small town, no cops were called.
4-star for H's character H was a known player & charmer in their town. He was also responsible and caring with his family. Loved how H became so into h because he'd never been like that with any other woman. And he kept proving that it wasn't temporary. He was relentless in his charming but insistent pursuit to get h & her 6-month-old daughter (conceived via in-vitro) to move in with him ASAP. It was a battle of wills since h wasn't that easily persuaded & resisted him. But he'd laugh off her attempts since he was so certain for both of them. So, by day3, she let him smex her. His chasing her didn't feel creepy or cruel. Nor her quick consenting to him seem cheap or weak. He was attuned to her needs/wants & showed it. It also helped that he welcomed her and her baby into his big rowdy family and she was able to see how trustworthy & caring H generally was. By day7 (@55%), he managed to get her & her baby moved in with him.
3-star for h's character She was likable too with her mix of sass & quiet caution, niceness & feistiness. Just didn't like that she became romantically jaded due to empty promises of her past boyfriends.
Like a novella but longer What I find different about Weir's books so far (this is my 4th Weir read) is it's smutty-novella feel but with longer pages so we get more explanation, time, and discussion with H&h. As a result, the insta-love is more fully fleshed-out and realistic questions/issues around it are better handled. Both were able to delve into h's trust issues and H's manwhore past better. @ the end/epilogue, their quickie wedding & h's inevitable pregnancy didn't seem so impulsive and their HEA is more believable.
Sexual History: 24yo h had past BFs, including her last college-football BF of about 2 years in her latter college years who she caught cheating on her. She's drawn to “alphaholes” than nice guys & some have declared their love & deep interest in her but eventually ended their affair for some reason. After her last BF, she had no-strings sexual hookups with men she'd meet @ bars & clubs. She'd been celibate for about 18months since before her surrogate pregnancy. Her best friend (BFF) was infertile & really wanted to have a baby with her husband. So, she begged h to donate her eggs and be a surrogate for their baby. But a few weeks into h's surrogate pregnancy, her BFF & her soon-to-be-ex husband insisted that h get an abortion since they were now divorcing. h's BFF had caught her hubby cheating on a woman who was also now preggo with his child. Since then, h's BFF and her hubby no longer wanted h's baby.
Not sure if H ever had a serious GF. He's a known player in their small Montana town just like his 6 brothers. He had a weekly rotation of no-strings hookups with several women, many he met at their local bar & who he'd smex at his bachelor-pad apartment over his workshop. From another book, he had 3 different lovers who had alloted days of the week slots he'd hookup with. One of his hookups (OW) became obsessed with him & tried to get pregnant by him by poking holes in his condoms. He dropped her after that & became celibate since 1 year ago. He'd always used a condom (mostly 2 at a time) with all his lovers so h is the 1st one he's smexxed bareback. First time H&h smexxed was 2 days after they met @ 36% & bareback every time since he was clear about his intent to breed her with lots of babies....more