Review: Battle of the Book Boyfriends
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 17, 2014
So there I was, laying on Shay Savage’s bed in a hotel room in Chicago with my friend Kristi, as one does upon meeting an author for the first time. It was early May, and rumor had it that the long awaited sequel to Surviving Raine was close to fruition. Shay whipped out her cell phone and showed us a picture of Sebastian Stark while Evan Arden made shots. You think I’m making this up don’t you? I have witnesses.Anyway, after a few drinks Shay offered to show us the synopsis to Bastian’s Storm. Uh, hell yes! Kristi and I bowed our heads together over Shay’s cell phone to read as Shay watched our reactions. WAIT. What did I just read? Bastian has to play in one last death match tournament? TO THE DEATH? No! This is supposed to be my, I mean Raine’s HEA. Okay, fine, big breath. It’s Bastian, he’ll win. Wait…. what’s the last sentence? He’s competing against Evan Arden? In a death match?Now Kristi hasn’t read Evan’s series, Otherwise Alone, Otherwise Occupied and Otherwise Unharmed. So Kristi is all, “Yay, Bastian’s a badass!” While I’m all, “YOU’RE PITTING YOUR HEROS AGAINST EACH OTHER?” This cannot be happening. I love them both. I’m invested in them both. What kind of sicko battles her heroes to the death? (I’m looking at you, Shay)My feels are all over the place and I haven’t even read the book yet. The Evan Arden series is complete. I thought Evan & Lia were living happily ever after. Now Evan is being taken out of retirement to fight Bastian to the death. Only one of them can survive. Shay’s just crazy enough to do it too.Bastian has trouble accumulating to society, to say the least. He misses the island. Yeah… the island where they were stranded with no electricity, communication or toilet paper. That island. Bastian goes so far as to suggest that they could go back sometime for a vacation. Clueless bastard.  He struggles with basic societal norms. Being polite to Raine’s friends, staying sober. And then… his past comes back with a vengeance.Bastian does make it back to an island, one covered in snow and ice and subzero temperatures. The death match is in a place so remote it’s only accessible by dropping from a helicopter. The conditions so harsh they will kill you if another contestant doesn’t do it first.Bastian’s Storm is less of a love story than Surviving Raine was, though their love for each other is evident. Why Raine puts up with some pretty deplorable behavior is understandable. So how does it all end? Without giving away spoilers… I can say no more.And okay fine, that hotel room was at an author signing. But it really happened.