Review: Not a typical love story. Ace is bad, but he grew on me.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 2, 2014
London has had a rough life. And on her graduation day from college, it should be a celebration. But soon it turns to horror when she finds out her beloved brother, Jonah is in trouble. He and his cohort, Donovan "Ace" Crow are in a tight situation ready to explode.Soon Ace is taking care of London for her safety and to get something he wants. He will do what he has to in order to get it. Ace is alpha, bossy, dominant, and in control. He is also cool, calculating, and shows little emotion.(Quote)My life was already f***ed up before, but with Ace in the picture it's completely fallen apart.I was honestly not sure how I felt about him at first. Sometimes I hated him, sometimes he intrigued me, but then he began to grow on me.London is vulnerable, yet resilient. She is alone and has lived through multiple traumatic circumstances. But she is willing to take him on. She has needs and she wants them met. So she is willing to handle whatever she has to. But she has lost everyone she has ever cared about and is scarred from it."Still think you handle me?""You don't scare me...""Really? 'Cause you should be terrified."I had a hard time warming up to Ace since he was so detached at first. But I understood it was part of his lifestyle and defense. He was definitely in charge of all aspects of his life most times and he should not care. Caring is dangerous, but he could not seem to avoid it. She brought out the more human side of him."I'm a complex person. Things are never simple when it comes to me.""I guess it's a good thing I'm a patient girl that likes to figure s*** out then, huh?"Ace did win me over and I really felt for him and his issues and complicated life. I liked seeing the strong controlled man show cracks in his armor and feel something. And she dealt with so much and got stronger too. They were confused, passionate, volatile, and shared a connection tied with guilt, shame, anger, lust, and longing. There were secrets and  mysteries, unfolding throughout. It was interesting to try to peace together the puzzle and figure out the big picture. There was danger, suspense, and gritty scenes.There were some interesting characters that all had a little questionable mixed in with good and bad aspects of their character. I loved his cousin, Bianca who added some comic relief during some dark and intense situations. But it was interesting to try to figure out what all of the secrets, motives, and hidden agendas were.This was not a typical love story. It does have passion and love, but it is also tainted with danger, suspense, and tragedy. It is raw and uncomfortable at times. It has themes of redemption, sacrifice, survival, and what makes life worth living. But it is raw, painful, complicated, and far from a fairy tale."Why can't he be a normal guy with a normal lifestyle? Why can't he be someone I met a long time ago? Why does living him have to be lethal? A risk?"It was told in both Ace and London's points of views that were very different in mood and attitude, but were necessary to get into their inner minds and feelings. There were twists, turns, secrets, and lies all mixed up that kept me intrigued til the end. I have some mixed feelings after it is all over, since this was not a typical read for me. This book is different than anything Shanora Williams has written. But it is one of those books that you will think about long after you put it down still coming up with little intersecting pieces and fitting them together. And it will literally leave you feeling like you have been on a wild, intense, emotional journey.I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review and was also a beta reader for this book. Quotes are from beta/arc copy and subject to change.