Review: an enjoyable story with angst and love
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 29, 2014
3.5 starsI really enjoyed this new adult story about two people finding their way through life after suffering extreme emotional pain. After losing important people in their lives to tragic circumstances, Ophelia and Z are just getting my, using their own survival mechanisms to survive each day, putting one foot in front of the other, doing everything they can to bandaid the wounds of their past.I liked the premise of this story and how it was told in alternating point of views. We were able to get in each characters' head-space and really see where they were coming from."The pain is part of the reason I do the things I do. It grounds me in a way nothing else can." (Z)As the story went on, the details of the tragedy's that had affected their lives were told, and I felt for Z and Ophelia and what they had been through. When they meet, the attraction is instant, but they also see through each other and feel another level of connection. Ophelia is guarded and initially stands up to Z's charm, and while feels attracted to Z she is not falling at Z's feet as soon as he looks at her, which throws Z at the start. He is used to one night stands, girls falling all over him, but he feels a pull to Ophelia. The lust is there for sure but he is unsure whether he wants her to 'see' him for who he is and not the brash, cocky persona that he projects to the rest of the world.Ophelia feels this connection too and initially rejects it for the same reason, protecting herself from being hurt again. But their connection is strong, the lust instant and the relationship intense. This translated into steamy love scenes that then gave us so much more emotional connection between the pair other than sex. Insta-love does happen, it is real and, as someone who experienced it, and is still in that relationship 26 years later, I can relate to it, so the speed at which their relationship progressed never bothered me.I liked the way they called each other out on their actions, how they worked through their issues and showed vulnerability and sides to themselves that they have kept hidden. If I had to be picky I would have liked to know Z's real name.I also liked the support characters. Z's friends have been through everything with him and their protection of him, particularly Cam's was understandable. I thought we were given enough of Z's family history and dymamics to allow us to empathize with his situation. However, I would have liked the same amount of Ophelia's family history so I could connect more fully with her.Overall I liked this story, I liked the setting and the characters. The story developed nicely and set us up for the next in the series. I'm looking forward to Ash's story.