Review: The Beyond series by Kit Rocha has become one of my all-time favourite series.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 8, 2014
4.5 Stars~Reviewed by ANN & posted at Under the Covers Book BlogThe Beyond series by Kit Rocha has become one of my all-time favourite series. With its gritty dystopian world and larger-than-life characters, Rocha has created an elite gang that I believe many readers would love to be a part of.BEYOND JEALOUSLY, the fourth book in the series has been a book that I’ve been looking forward to since book one. If you’re followed the series religiously then you know of Ace and his Playgirl ways. You also know of Rachel and her work she does with the O’Kanes, but there wasn’t much information on Cruz until now.Naturally, as Ace is my favourite character behind Dallas, I was looking forward to this book. However, Ace isn’t quite the easy-going seductive bastard he usually is in this one. Rocha digs deep – very, very deep and we get a far more emotional side to Ace. As a person who whored his way through a lot of his life, a lot of this self-respect has diminished through the years. He doesn’t believe himself worthy to be love by a person – let alone two.When Rachel and Cruz bring him into their relationship, there is always something standing in the way. Ace doesn’t allow them in and it frustrates Rachel and Cruz as much as it will frustrate the reader. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting the level of emotion that Rocha brought to this book. I expected balls-to-the wall sex when it came to Ace, but even though the erotic element is very much there in this book, there’s also great internal angst and sexual conflict as well.For me, BEYOND JEALOUSY breezed at a 4 star rating for most of the book. However, the last 10% or so really changed my opinion. For a true threesome to work, I needed Cruz and Ace to fall in line with each other. Yes, Rachel is as much a part of this as any of them, but the conflict really lay between Cruz and Ace. When the fight came, I knew that this was where the story was going to turn for me. Not only did it address the conflict head on, but it also showcased the passion they have for each other as well. After all, I’m sure you all know I’m not opposed to M/M lovin’ at all.After that glorious turn, Rocha hits readers with another great ending that almost had me panicking. When you feel so much for side characters in a book, that’s when you know you’ve done a great job with characterization and development. I’m definitely looking forward to Trix’s story next!What was most surprising for me was actually Cruz. I never thought much about him until now. The way he cares for Ace and Rachel, the sense of authority he takes in the bedroom, and everything he does for the O’Kane gang made me see him in a new light. I ended up LOVING him just as much as Ace. And that’s hard to do especially when it happened all in one book.Kit Rocha handles the ménage a trios flawlessly. Brimming with passion, angst and intensity, BEYOND JEALOUSY will leave readers out of breath and begging for more. After this, I’m sure every girl would want to be Rachel in this hot man sandwich.*ARC provided by author