Review: Great premise, not so great execution
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 02 7, 2014
2.5 starsShredded is the first book in Tracy Wolff's New Adult genre series, Extreme Risk, and also one that I was extremely excited to read!  From the cover to the high adrenaline world the book was set in, Shredded had huge potential.  However, after finishing the book, I was left feeling disappointed after struggling with the execution of the story, and the characters within.Z Michael is a 21 year old professional snowboarder who is training to compete in the X Games, as well as the Olympics.  He suffered the traumatic loss of his sister and mother when he was young, and has never been the same since.  He harbors feelings of guilt, anger and resentment; and relies on the adrenaline high, that riding and competing deliver, just to cope.  Other than his close knit group of friends, he never lets anyone see the real Z.Ophelia Richardson has also suffered traumatic loss and has moved to Park City to start fresh.  Her memories continue to haunt her, but they also serve as a constant reminder of a life that she refuses to live again.  Wanting to recover from her injuries and lead a very quiet life, she goes to work for her Aunt and Uncle at a ski resort.  When she meets Z, she promises herself that she won't go down that path yet again.  But as she gets to know him, she realizes that is a promise that she just can't keep.From the start of the book, I had a really hard time with certain aspects. They really took me out of the story and by the time I started seeing improvement, I was almost finished with the book.  Z and Ophelia had all the traits that would normally make me fall in love with them, but I just could not connect with their characters.  I found them to be juvenile, naive and their interactions felt very unnatural. Their relationship felt forced and even though I tried, I just could not see the spark between them. Couple that with professions of love after only a week, and they just weren't believable and genuine.  The cast of secondary characters added a more well rounded feel to the story, but the dynamic between the friends was odd and lacked authenticity.  The story had a very sophomoric feel to it and it was difficult for me to reconcile such adolescent actions and behaviors, with characters who've suffered these extremely emotional life experiences.Overall, Shredded was a promising story that struggled in the beginning, but eventually found its way.  The world that the author created in this series is still very intriguing to me and I am curious how she will build upon it in Shattered, releasing in April. I'm just not sure if that curiosity is enough to make me want to continue with the series.