Review: Good addition to the series!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 10 31, 2013
I wanted to love this.Sadly, I did not. I'm actually quite disappointed by that fact, as I simply adore this series. I will say that I liked Fall Apart, some bits much more than others.I love the beginning. I'm always a fan of the "getting to know you" bits of a romance. I prefer that to last since it makes for some yummy character development and tension building. Culpepper definitely delivers on that end. Damon and Alarick are both dynamic characters that are just oozing personality. Alarick had me at his first cheeky comment. I find him hilarious. The stuff that tumbles out of his mouth is just... OUTRAGEOUS. Damon is loveable, like a favorite stuffed animal that blushes a lot. His insecurities, and his shyness, are so endearing. The dynamic between the two is wonderful, I beyond love their interactions with one another. They have many great dialogue moments, and I pretty much giggled my way through the first chunk of the book. It's amusing, fun, and (don't worry) sexy. The sexual tension...drool inducing!I was so ready to love the pages out of this book. And then it all sort of unraveled, and things started to feel aimless. For a book about Damon and Alarick, the two spend surprisingly little time together. Which makes the fact that some of that time together is glossed over, rather infuriating. So, let me back up a little. This is definitely not insta-luv. The first half of the book is dedicated, in large part, to Damon and Alarick's amusing courtship. Loved that part. When that witches brew of testosterone, pheromones, and sexual frustration finally boils over, and they spend the weekend together, we get one scene. ONE SCENE. It is a great scene. BUT the rest of their weekend together is summarized. Hated that part. Honestly, this would not be such an issue if not for how the rest of the book plays out. So, I felt a bit cheated that weekend together was summarized, almost as an afterthought, and not shown. This is understandably a problem, telling not showing. This  (and a few other moments) would have resonated on such a deeper level if shown. After reading a massive chunk of "will they, won't they" I deserved every dirty and cheesy detail.There is a huge cast of secondary characters in Fall Apart. These characters are all nicely developed with memorable personalities, and they contribute to the story. Oddly, they distract from it at the same time. Damon's friends, in particular, take up a lot of focus. I feel crazy saying that though, because I really do love all the secondary characters. Some of them stick out in my head so vividly. They all make for more amazing dialogue, and amusing moments.  However, I got so frustrated that it seemed like parts of Alarick and Damon's story were sacrificed in order to show moments with these characters instead.There is a second storyline with Zane and Mark (from book 2). I love it, because I love them. It was nice to catch up with them. They are adorable and perfect. I'll probably go back and reread their book because I felt all nostalgic. But the thing is, they go from contributing to the plot to distracting from it. Towards the end they interrupt the pacing at the most unfortunate times. There are these intense moments in the second half of the book. All I wanted was to find out how things were going to go with Damon and Alarick, and BOOM...Zane and Mark tangent. They ended up adding to my overall frustration. Don't get me wrong, their scenes are great, probably some of the best in the book. But I can't help feeling like they take a little away from Damon and Alarick's story, and most of their scenes would have worked great as a separate short story.Overall, I loved the beginning of Fall Apart and struggled between like and irritation for the last half (maybe a little less) of the book. S.E. Culpepper writes strong, unforgettable characters. She is great with dialogue, and interactions between the characters. My favorite moments are Alarick and Damon getting to know one another. She captures those awkward, and often comical, exchanges flawlessly. Fall Apart is often hilarious, and occasionally frustrating. I didn't love it completely, but I liked it most of the time. And I did< fall in love with the characters. The story has so much potential to be great. And even though there are a few things stopping that from happening, I do think it is worth the read. Particularly if you're a fan of the series.*ARC has been generously provided in exchange for an honest review.3 Stars