Review: Nocturne: Must Read Author
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 14, 2014
I love the Colorado Mountain Series.  My first Kristen Ashley book was The Gamble.  From the moment I discovered her, she has been moved to my “must read” author shelf.  I love the depth of her characters, the complexity of her back stories and the true, authentic and organic nature of her plots.  The stories weave in and out of life, with seamless effort.  The reader is brought along, like a voyeur, on  the ride of a lifetime.Gnaw Bone and Carnal are small towns in Colorado with characters that seem to come from all over, but each fall in love with the area.  If you have visited Colorado, the state with more 14’ers than any other, you will know that the mountains, the plains and the vast big skies present beauty beyond belief.Jacob Decker has been all over the country, but now that he is looking to settle down, he buys a home in Gnaw Bone.  While working on a case, Decker literally runs into his former friend, Emmanuelle.  His Emme was a girl when they were friends back in Denver and he was dating Emme’s best friend.  Over and over it was mentioned that Decker, or Jacob as Emme called him, was dating and living with Emme’s friend.  He even tried to marry said friend.  When the friend dumped him, Decker left town and nine years have passed with no contact between Emme and Deck. All this build up, yet the story was hollow for me at this point.  As the tale progressed, I began to understand that this hollow empty feeling was reflective of Emme herself.Overall, I loved Jacob Decker.  He was honest, truthful and genuine.  His motives and character development were authentic and had me cheering for him at every turn.  My biggest criticism would be his steps and missteps in the past, but we cannot be judged by our past, but by our actions today.  Emme, on the other hand, was not my favorite KA heroine.  She was not a Lexi or a Laurie and she was nowhere near the calibre of Nina! But as her full story became flushed out, I grew to like her and I wanted her to find happiness.I can’t wait to get these books in paper.  I have begun collecting the Dream Man Series in paperback and I highly encourage everyone to pick up The Gamble and Sweet Dreams and take a reading vacation to Colorado!  Enjoy!