Review: Gobsmacked! Great read but not a romance.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 23, 2014
Very rarely do I read a book that I like and not be able to pinpoint or articulate what made it so good....but I'll try.I'm speechless. Gobsmacked!First: This is NOT a romance. Yes, there are romantic elements but the story line is much deeper than the quest for Happily Ever After. Maddy (my hero) was a unique, refreshing character to journey with, in this New Adult novel. She has survived in a loveless, abusive house but has maintained her spirit. She says she is broken but everything she shows us is nothing but poise, grace, and strength.REALLY AWESOME CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT!!!This is worth reading for the character development alone.The plot: Her father is a bad guy. Think mafia king (Don Corleone) without ANY redeeming qualities. Maddy knows he is a bad guy but she finds out out his evil is far more heinous than she first believed. She secretly turns him in but remains under his care (I used this word loosely since she is severely abused.) until she can leave for college.Her father hires Jackson who is on leave from his military EOD job to seduce Maddy and drive her to New York where she is to start school.This piece of the plot wasn't very fleshed out for my taste but I'm hoping the next book will tie up the loose ends.I do have to say: I was thrilled that Maddy didn't fall for the BS and her choices were smarter than some of the other NA heroines that I've read.This was FREE and I highly recommend downloading it.Thank you Ms. Maria Cope for sharing your debut novel! Very impressed!