Review: A fun addition to this series
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 28, 2014
3.5 stars rounded to 4I reviewed this at MustReadBooksOrDie with my friend Shelley!Shel: Lucy and Kale are a lot of fun. They mesh well together: they have fun personalities, banter back and forth, and are comfortable with the friends-with-benefits relationship they've developed; it works for them. Both of them have had experiences that have made them less than eager to seek out series partners and since what they have is working, why rock the boat, right? Wellll....things shift in some subtle (and not so subtle) ways and before they know it, they're denying feelings and longings for things that they never thought they'd want..and having to face things and take actions that maybe they didn't anticpate. Told in a mixture of flashbacks and present day narrative, we learn why they feel the way they feel about relationships and what happens when they decide to give a real relationship a chance.Court: Their story is an interesting one, and a bit different than the dynamics that brought together the couples in Ignite and Incinerate. Jace is the sweetheart, Knox is the dirty talker, and Kale tries to be the funny guy but mostly comes off as the most loyal and most likely to go with the flow. That is...until things he cares about become threatened. He almost has his head in his you know what for a bit too long, but this Mama's boy (which is really awesome) has some incentive to wisen up before its too late! And that journey was fun.Shel: Some things I liked:Shel: --I liked that Lucy owned her sexuality and Kale didn't blink ..he accepted it as her and didn't ever think slut shaming thoughts. Court: I do sure hate the slut shaming. So...I loved that part also. Lucy is how every woman should be raised. Love it. Own it. Men can't handle it!Shel: --I liked the way Kale handled the news Lucy shares with him within the first pages of the book. Court: He puts his foot in his mouth a couple of times, but luckily Lucy is Lucy and doesn't freak out too early. Like the communication that they *mostly* have.Shel: --I liked the honest way Lucy's mom handled things at Thanksgiving--the intensity of her reaction felt right (and I liked how Kale handled that too). Court: I wasn't as big of a fan of that scene. I think it was that I couldn't decide whether her mom was trying to be the pot or the kettle, but I was surprised by it because of how independent Lucy is...I guess I had hoped that her mom is where she got that from. Hhhmm... but Kale. Kale is a white knight in camo clothing. Shel: Yeah..don't get me wrong, I didn't LIKE her reaction but I bet lots of parents react that way; I guess that's what I meant when I said it felt real.Shel: --I liked that the stories of Knox and Jace were woven in and we could see what they were up to. Court: Me too!Shel: --I appreciated that while I kept waiting for explosive angst-ness to hit, it really never did. There were a few moments when I facepalmed, but really, these two handled most things fairly well. Court: Yeah. I was waiting for the hurt locker. But...there was enough drama throughout to keep me on my toes!Shel: With lots of old and new characters in this series, I foresee many more novels to come. Happy reading! Court: I'm still most excited for Branson's story y'all! And he had some cameos too, so I am one happy girl!Shelley 3 starsCourtney: 3 1/2 Stars