Review: Good Read...Disturbing Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 17, 2013
Starting this off on a good note, this was definitely a well-written book.  This author is not amateur.  She was able to weave a very intriguing plot that a novice writer would have a very hard time delivering to an eager (and experienced) audience.  I have read dozens of books and it takes true talent to create a plot where the timeline is out of order and is intersected by sincere emotions and haunting memories from the characters, but still crisp and clear enough for the reader to latch onto and enjoy.  The flow had a definite pull to it, and I read at least ninety percent of the tantalizing tale in one sitting.Now to the not-so good part.  This is the first time I have read a romance and  was hoping that the main couple *did not* get together at the end.  To put it bluntly, the hero - and I use that term very, very loosely in this instance, because he rarely acts like one - is a d*** for most of the story.  From the first moment he steps into the arena, I was truly shocked at the way he treated the heroine - again a loose term here.  I didn't like him when he was humping her like a back alley hooker and I didn't like him when he discovered the error of his ways then tried to do a quick about-face to become a caring and compassion good guy - it seemed forced and unnatural for how his character was portrayed up to that point. I actually kept hoping that Noelle would end up running off with James' Executive Assistant (EA) - if you read the story, you may get a sense of what I'm saying.  I just did not like them as a couple.  Yes, they get their happily ever after - which also seemed to be a little too neat and tidy of an ending, especially after he treated her like bed trash and sent her into an identity crisis spiral (colored contacts, false hair down her back, sudden weight loss, caking on make-up) for most of the book.  Even when James (I shudder even when I write his name) thinks he's being nice to Noelle, his kept mistress, he's still behaving like a bully.  He actually *orders* her to have a conversation with him when he thinks she's becoming emotionally withdrawn from him.  If that's what it's like to fall in love, I will pass. As for the sex...Yes, it's electric and thrilling - compare it to the movie 9 1/2 weeks - but not really my kind of intimacy.  Admittedly, the scenes are HOT, but I draw the line at choking (scary).Four stars for great writing, slippery adult scenes, and intriguing plot.  As far as the romance, I would say this was more of a torrid affair with an unexpectedly sweet ending.  Grade A-