Review: Out of tune
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 04 17, 2013
Thank you to the author and Making Connections group for the opportunity to read and review this title.As a caveat, I rate and review books based on how I connect with the characters and their responses to the conflicts in the story. Even an erotica should have a well-integrated storyline and character development, in my opinion. With that in mind, my review promises to be an honest account of my thoughts on the novel.After reading the synopsis of this book, I was excited to get my hands on what promised to be a turbulent battle of hearts and sexual desires. Unfortunately, this book fell flat for me.The book is written from the point of view of Crystal, who is a bass player in the band Triple Threat. At the beginning of the story, Crystal and her best friend and fellow guitarist, Chad, are looking for prospective band mates. As luck would have it, Chad finds two brothers, Giovanni and Rosario, to join their fold and to even more luck and Crystal's surprise Giovanni just happens to be the classmate she'd been fantasizing about.The twist in the story occurs when Chad and Crystal engage in a "no-strings attached" sexual relationship because unfortunately and fortunately for Chad, who has been in love with Crystal for years, this gives him what he has always wanted, but at the expense of building an even deeper connection to an individual with unrequited love for him. Crystal, on the other hand, is not romantically in love with Chad; even though she is extremely attracted to him and loves him as a best friend, she draws a clear demarcation for their relationship. She is, however, romantically attracted to Giovanni and tries, rather desperately, throughout the first part of the story to gain his appeal.Somewhere along the way, the story went out of tune for me. Taken in tiny chunks, it might've worked, however as a cohesive novel, I had trouble with the consistency of the main character's narration. For example, in one scene she would say how her efforts to gain Giovanni's favor were going unanswered, but then not five pages down and a day or so in time-line, she states how she loves when she was able to make him respond (he bits his lower lip) a certain with just a sexy smile. Was there an out of scene interaction with these two that progressed their relationship? Also the main character contradicts herself, a lot. In one scene she states how she loves that Giovanni treats her with respect, unlike the way Chad treats her. Yet there were no indication up to that point that Chad treated her with anything but reverie. In fact, he constantly fawned over her.In addition to the disjointed flow of the story, the characters were not easy to like. Crystal is shallow, self-indulgent, and indecisive. She knows the exact position she puts Chad in when she strikes up the bargain of "no-strings attached" sex and yet she continues with it. She also sends him mixed-messages, keeping him at arm's reach but pulling him close when it was convenient for her. Also I just couldn't see the appeal of Giovanni. Granted I couldn't see the pull for either of the guys, however at least Chad had an established past with Crystal. Now all of these characteristics and conflicts are great set-ups for character growth; however, three quarters into the novel and I lost hope for any resolution in Crystal's character flaw. Chad fared no better. At first I felt sorry for him. Unrequited love is never an easy position, but as the story progressed, his back-bone decreased in rigidity and I felt his manlihood wane into nonexistence. My pity quickly turned into disgust. By the time my thoughts gravitated to Giovanni there was nothing more to give. I was indifferent. Another issue I had with the characters is that the story is written in a tell-me and not show-me way which I, often times, find difficult to fully invest in the story. This became especially detrimental when the narrator is a character I quickly lost respect for, leading me to devalue her point of view and take everything with a grain of salt.Lastly, I had trouble with how much the male characters said "I love you" in this story. Even a hopeless romantic would cringe at the ease and abundance at which these words flowed out of the mouth of these men. It quickly lost its value and impact.In summary, the novel would be great for someone looking for gratuitous smut. When taken in portions of steamy scenes, it may be enjoyable. Taken as a whole, the dissonance in the tale and the characters needed more refining. The key players were superficial and inconsistent leaving me frustrated, confused, and eventually indifferent.