Review: This was just too much *Spoilers*
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 11 4, 2013
I wanted to like this story, I thought the basic premiss was a good one, but it was just too...I'm not even sure how to describe it.The characters had little development, this is an insta love storyline, but not a very good one. The dialogue was awkward and preachy, and the writing style was a bit all over the place. The author would rush through scenes with plot value only to spend a paragraph discussing the locking of a car.The plot was also a little unbelievable to me. Randomly the MC, Graham, is a member of a super secret ex-military, but government sanctioned, elite special forces unit. That has a headquarters in his basement. And who appears to have an above average quantity of gay members. I always find that a bit silly. Every other character you meet turns out to be gay too. I'm all for setting up a series, but this was a bit over the top.The author made a little too much fuss over the dog aspect as well. The author is obviously a huge fan of German Shepards (GSD). I however wasn't a huge fan of how they were portrayed in the book. As a former vet tech, as well as the daughter of a K-9 handler, I am well acquainted with GSDs and truly don't have enough nice things to say about them. The author spent a great deal of time praising Jake, the main dog in the book, for his protective instincts. GSDs are great protectors, however, the author showed Jake as constantly growling and snapping, and in several cases biting aggressors. Some of these moments even took place when the aggressor did nothing more then say something to one of the MCs. GSDs are great dogs, they are protective of their people and homes, it's one of their best qualities. That being said, the way this dog was described had me on edge. Well trained working dogs don't act like this, if you have a dog this protective and aggressive you've got a problem. The author and characters in the book seemed to find it hilarious and praise worthy.There was also a comment at the end of the story in regards to suicide that really offended me. Obviously the author has not had someone they love take, as she described it, "the coward's way out". Even in the context described in the book this was really a turn off for me.Overall I just thought this story was trying to be too many things at once, insta love story, super spy thriller, dog behavior expert, rape recovery awareness, homophobic kidnapping adventure, it was really just all over place.This was the first story I've read by this author, I won't be looking for any more.