Captive in the Dark - CJ Roberts

Caleb is a man with a singular interest in revenge. Kidnapped as a young boy and sold into slavery by a power-hungry mobster, he has thought of nothing but vengeance. For twelve years he has immersed himself in the world of pleasure slaves searching for the one man he holds ultimately responsible. Finally, the architect of his suffering has emerged with a new identity, but not a new nature. If Caleb is to get close enough to strike, he must become the very thing he abhors and kidnap a beautiful girl to train her to be all that he once was.

Eighteen-year-old Olivia Ruiz has just woken up in a strange place. Blindfolded and bound, there is only a calm male voice to welcome her. His name is Caleb, though he demands to be called Master. Olivia is young, beautiful, naïve and willful to a fault. She has a dark sensuality that cannot be hidden or denied, though she tries to accomplish both. Although she is frightened by the strong, sadistic, and arrogant man who holds her prisoner, what keeps Olivia awake in the dark is her unwelcome attraction to him.

I have mixed feelings about this book.  I don't want to like it on principle - Caleb (the main male character) kidnaps Livvie in order to train her and then sell her as a sex slave in the middle east.  I want to hate him, but I don't... This whole story is a story of revenge.  Caleb's revenge, Rafiq's (the man who took care of him as Caleb was also bought and sold) revenge. 

This book is not the feel good HEA story I'm used to reading and to be honest, I could only read short bursts of it at a time.  It all felt wrong, reading it and even liking it at times, it was just wrong considering the topic and what he was doing to her. 

This books leaves off without her training being finished and she hasn't been sold yet. 

I only started reading this because Totallybooked gave it five stars.  I'm torn on whether or not to read the next book.

Reviewer's edit:  I wound up reading book number 2 and absolutely LOVED it...guess there is something wrong with me after all :)

Breathe (Sea Breeze 1) - Abbi Glines

Sadie White's summer job isn't going to be on the beach life-guarding or working at rental booths like most kids her age. With her single mother's increasing pregnancy and refusal to work, Sadie has to take over her mother's job as a domestic servant for one of the wealthy summer families on a nearby island.

When the family arrives at their summer getaway, Sadie is surprised to learn that the owner of the house is Jax Stone, one of the hottest teen rockers in the world. If Sadie hadn't spent her life raising her mother and taking care of the house she might have been normal enough to be excited about working for a rock star.

Even though Sadie isn't impressed by Jax's fame, he is drawn to her. Everything about Sadie fascinates Jax but he fights his attraction. Relationship's never work in his world and as badly as he wants Sadie, he believes she deserves more. By the end of the summer, Jax discovers he can't breathe without Sadie.

But can their love overcome the disparity in their lifestyles? Or will they have to learn how to without each other breathe again?

This was the 4th Abbi Glines book that I've read and it's the first one I absolutely could not put down. Every blog review of all of her books has been so head over heels in love with her that I was starting to think there was something wrong with me...I thought The Vincent Boys was good but I could not stand Lana so I didn't enjoy The Vincent Brothers. Unfortunately, I read Because of Low before Breathe because I didn't know they were a series (just an amazon suggestion) and I liked it but again didn't love it.

I loved this book. Even though I knew what the end result would be, I couldn't help myself from wanting to know how they got there. I didn't even want to like Sadie at first because I got the wrong impression from reading Marcus' story first.

However, I wound up really liking Sadie. I thought her character was well written and I felt like I understood what she was thinking. I of course loved Jax...who wouldn't love a rock star that's nice to little kids!?! I also got to put some pieces together from Because of Low. All in all, good summer read!

Fissure - The Patrick Chronicles - Nicole Williams

His confidence on a hiatus, his swagger on sabbatical, and his ego bruised, Patrick Hayward is a shell of the man he once was. Cursing at and writing off love after the only woman he let himself fall for wound up marrying his older brother, Patrick enrolls himself at Stanford hoping college life, the California girls, and the epic surf will get him back to his free-spirited, ladies-man-extraordinaire self.

Just when Patrick feels the shadow of himself returning, Emma Scarlett enters his life, seeing through his shenanigans and calling him on his crap.

Intrigued by this fascinating creature who is ignorant to his charm, surrounded by four older brothers that look at Patrick like he's a bug to squish, and dating the same guy for the past six years who gives new meaning to the term territorial boyfriend, Patrick gravitates to Emma, knowing she's everything he shouldn't fall for.

So, of course, he can't help himself.

It doesn't take long for Patrick to discover Emma has as many secrets as he does. And hers may be just as dark as his.

This time, falling for the girl could not only break his heart, but his spirit.

Well, if I didn't love Patrick while I was reading the Eden Trilogy - which I obviously did - I would have absolutely fallen for him during this book...in my case I just fell harder.  I would still be torn to have to choose a Hayward brother - lucky for me I don't have to because they both live in my Kindle now! I consider myself a self proclaimed Willtrick girl!

This books picks up a month or so after The Eden Trilogy leaves us off, and takes Patrick on a journey by himself, against his wishes.  I honestly am even starting to fall a little bit for their Dad (which started in the last Eden book). Nicole Williams knows how to write a lovable man!

This story had me laughing in the first chapter, sighing throughout and left me with my heart hurting in the end...I cannot wait for Fusion!

The Eden Trilogy - Nicole Williams

College sophomore Bryn Dawson is a self-proclaimed poster child for normal. However, the day William Hayward enters her life, normalcy is the last thing Bryn will be able to count on if she wants to be with him. Too mysterious and appealing to be good for a girl, Bryn feels drawn to him in a way that seems out of her control—as if fate is orchestrating it.

Despite every red flag and warning siren going off in her head telling her not to, Bryn falls hard for William, knowing he’s categorically different from anyone she’s ever met. She never imagined how right she was. When William takes her deeper into the rabbit hole of his world, Bryn must decide just how much she is willing to sacrifice to be with him, knowing no matter what, fate always finds a way to have the last laugh.

Spinning a new twist on star-crossed lovers, Eternal Eden will put Bryn through a gauntlet of turmoil, challenging her to find the power within herself to become the heroine in her own story.

This series was a recommendation from someone in a Facebook group that I joined who had also read What the Heart Wants.  I was waiting for seven sequels to be completed and released and was happy that what she recommended was a complete set so I figured I would give it a shot.  (Little did I know then…)

As luck would have it the first book was being offered free on Amazon so I jumped at the chance.  For the first time ever I only downloaded the first book and to be honest I’m not entirely sure why, but as soon as I finished book one, I of course went to the “store” right away and bought the follow-ups. 

The beginning of the first book reminded me a bit of the beginning of Providence (Jamie McGuire).  Bryn Dawson, sad and alone - much like Nina was.  But after a few chapters, this book took on a life of it’s own, and I'm happy to say - it's one of my favorite paranormal series to date. 

There are multiple swoon-worthy men in this book and I’d have to say at least two if not three will make it to my book boyfriend list before it’s all said an done but the love square/star that we wind up with in this book has four different men competing for the attention of Miss Dawson…not that there is any real competition, there is always only one that’s meant to be. (Well only one that's meant to be for Bryn.  For me, it's a love them all kinda series).

Since these books also dip into the supernatural (not the vampire kind), you can imagine the journey to love is not an ordinary one.  There is some action and adventure.  There were times I did find Bryn annoying…but not as annoying as Bella (Twilight) or Kiera (Thoughtless).  The things about the relationship you wanted to shake her for not doing right, being honest, communication, etc. are things we can all see happening in every day life…these books just add some danger to the mix. 

I know comparing books is not always the right thing to do, but sometimes you just can't help yourself.  The thing I didn’t like about the Providence series was how it ended.  I loved the stories, I loved the characters and I loved Jared & Nina, but then it was this epic battle of good vs. evil and what I felt was a rush to an ending…Nicole Williams gave me what I was craving back then and what I have bbeen craving since then I guess.  We had the good vs. evil but she didn’t jump to end it there.  She played out the story and gave us an ending we could almost be complete with.  I honestly sighed in relief and wanted to be able to reach through my Kindle and hug the characters...and I wanted to find Nicole Williams and hug her too.  

Now I did say almost be complete with because, while I was truly elated with the book, I couldn’t help but feel there was a part of it that was still not 100% complete.  At first I just chalked it up to missing William, Bryn, Patrick and the whole rest of the crew…that happens to me at the end of a lot of books.  But then, I logged back into facebook to thank the girl who suggested this series to me and found out what was making me sad when she said, “Did you read Fissure and Fusion (still waiting for this one to come out)? It’s a two part series about Patrick by Nicole Williams” and it hit me…I wanted more Patrick!!! My other book boyfriend from this series was getting his own book and that was also sure to mean at least some cameos from his family members in the Eden trilogy right? (PLEASE! PLEASE!! PLEASE!!!)

I’ll keep you posted because I’ve already started reading Fissure and was laughing out loud in the first few pages… *sigh*

Beautiful Disaster - Jamie McGuire

The new Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.
Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

Oh Beautiful Disaster, how I love thee...let me count the ways...Travis, Travis, and more Travis!!!

I know this book has gotten some criticism regarding the amount of violence, but to be completely honest - I don't really care.  Jamie McGuire took us on a ride of story that I loved so much I have read this book four separate times.  It was another story when I got to the end I was so disappointed I started reading it over.  I couldn't stop talking about it, to the point where my husband pretty much new the entire story as I told him every detail and then I read it again. 

So they were a little crazy...everyone is a little crazy! It's just the amount of crazy one person is willing to put up with.  Abby and Travis each brought a good amount of crazy to the table so they both needed to be willing to put up with a good amount of crazy in return.

This book had moments that were heart breaking, and then some where you were literally smiling because things were happening the way you wanted them to.  Sometimes I was angry at Abby, sometimes I was angry at Travis - but to me, that just means Jamie McGuire wrote these characters well enough that I actually cared about how they treated each other. 

Jamie is currently re-writing the book from Travis' point of view and I for one can't wait to read it in 2013.  There was also a mention of getting books about Travis' brothers which I am hoping we get to see also.  I'm looking forward to Travis and Abby appearances in those books too! :)

I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in a good read that can handle a little bit of violence. See below for the review I posted to Amazon:

I read this book after reading the Fifty Shades Trilogy twice, and I wanted to move on to something new. The same friend that recommended those books suggested this one and I fell for it hook, line and sinker.

That isn't to say this book is like the Fifty Shades books at all. It's a different setting, different age group, different type of story line but I LOVED Travis and Abby. I found myself not able to put this book down, read it in one day.

People complained about the violence and the co-dependency of these characters but I can't say I was one of those people. If I had been friends with someone like Abby dating a Travis in college, perhaps I would feel differently? But even then, this was a story about two fictional characters, and any characters that got involved in the violence were also not real. I would say it's all in how you choose to read something. Some people read the Fifty Shades books and only saw Sex, some of us read a love story. Some people will read this and only see violence or an "unhealthy" relationship - again, some of us read a love story.

As a side note, my pet peeve in reading reviews (not just of this book) is when people claim the story is unrealistic. Well, duh! It's fiction. We are the same little girls that watched Cinderella and The Little Mermaid. We are champions of Kermit and Miss Piggy (really, a Frog and a Pig). We wait for the happy ending before the credits role. We wanted Baby and Johnny to live happily ever after, how old was her character again in that movie? We don't want realism...or at least I can be honest enough to say, I don't.

I did find some errors in the book that suggested to me the need for a proofreader, but all in all I loved the story line and the characters (the supporting characters of America and Shepley almost as much as Travis & Pigeon/Abby).

I was so sad for it to be over, that I returned right to the beginning and started it again. Even then I wasn't finished and I'm still left wanting more!

The Blood Like Poison Trilogy

Planning a re-read that will require a re-write of my review...stay tuned

Fifty Shades Trilogy - E L James

Fifty Shades of Grey

Let me first start by saying, all I had heard about these books when I decided to download them (my first Kindle purchase)was that it was “the best love story since Edward & Bella.”  My friend April posted that quote on her Facebook page after she finished reading the series.  April and I had both read and liked the Twilight Saga (though she was Team Edward and I was Team Jacob), and The Hunger Games, so I figured I had to give it a try.  Meanwhile, while writing this I’ve now read these books four times!

Fifty Shades of Grey started out a bit rough.  I wasn’t sure if it was adapting to my new Kindle or the story line, but I had a hard time reading the first few chapters.  I just wasn’t connecting with the story.  Once the characters moved to Seattle, the story picked up for me and I found that I could not put it down.  I also found that I could not stop talking about it.  I wanted to understand her and why she would try to do these things.  I wanted to understand what made him who he was and I realized, I was totally hooked.  E.L. James had me and I wasn’t going to let go. 

I know that most of the talk of these books is about the sex, and there is a lot of it.  While I wasn’t prepared for it when I originally sat down with my Kindle, I don’t think I could picture the book without it.  I know people say, they loved the story but could have done without the sex parts…I feel it was too much a part of the story to do without it.  It’s how they learned to trust each other and love each other.  It was graphic at times, and I wanted to close my eyes or read through peeking out around my fingers, it was all a part of Christian and Ana.  My inner cheerleader wanted them to work things out and find a way to be together. 

My biggest complaint of these books is the wording.  I think it’s easy to tell that the E.L. James is not from the U.S. even though that is where the story takes place.  I think she needed help in changing some phrasing to Americanize her book up a bit.  I found I had to remind myself that these books were based in Seattle because I kept picturing London.

I know that Christian and Ana both were supposed to have above average intelligence but there were just phrases or words I couldn’t picture either of them saying if they were really from here.  There is a difference between calling your Mom “Mother” and using the word beguiling regularly.  Just didn’t fit in my own opinion. 

Aside from that, I enjoyed Fifty Shades of Grey and I was so torn up at the end of the first book I had to go straight into reading book two.  I absolutely had to know what was going to happen. 

Fifty Shades Darker

This was my FAVORITE of the three books.  This for me is where the love in the love story really started to happen.  It was really with this second book that I became obsessed (or Greysessed if you will).  I thought their chemistry came more alive for me in this second book.  I pushed to get through the first few chapters anxious for the reunion of my new favorite couple. 

This book had action, adventure, love and of course more sex.  It had Christian learning to become a bit of a different person and Ana growing up as well.  They were learning new ways together.  They fought…and made up…and fought…and made up, E.L. James took us for a ride (ha ha pun intended).  We were re-introduced to characters and introduced to new ones.  There were bad guys and crazy girls and we even get a little more from Taylor (whose character I absolutely love! I want to hug him all the time). 

I would have to say I am torn between the masked ball at Christian’s parents’ house (from getting dressed, second chance earrings, the silver balls and their masks, to the table seating, the dancing and meeting the expensive charlatan) and the very end of this book in trying to decide what my favorite moment is.  I’m sure I could not choose, but I definitely choose Fifty Shades Darker as my favorite of the three. 

Fifty Shades Freed

I was so happy at the end of book two, I was probably literally smiling on the outside.  I couldn’t wait to start the third book, but was sad that it would be coming to an end. 

I was a little disappointed in where book three brings us in, I felt like we skipped a major milestone and I wanted it back.  Luckily, we did get a flashback or daydream of the big day but I still felt like it wasn’t the same.  I wanted the whole day, from the getting dressed to the last dance, and felt a little robbed for missing out on it completely. 

Eventually I resigned to being happy with where they were as a couple and was thrilled that the playful email banter continued in book three.  It made me actually laugh out loud.  I also love that she has come into her own a little bit and doesn’t always back down to him just because he is the controlling type.  I loved learning more about Christian and his history through everything that goes on in this book.  If I hadn’t fallen for him in book two (which I did), I would have in book three. 

There was some twists and turns I didn’t see coming but (to me), it was a little predictable what the cause of the big drama between Christian & Ana was going to be.  That’s not to say I wasn’t intrigued to see how it would all play out, I knew it wouldn’t be simple and that’s what kept me reading. 

There were so many favorite moments in all three books really that I could go on and on, but I’d be afraid to give anything away. 

What I took away from this trilogy was a love story.  Yes, there was sex and yes it was sometimes ‘kinky’ but it was just a part of the story of Christian & Ana.  I read the story and saw more.  It’s all in what you want to take away from it. 

I was so sad to read the end of the story and was so not ready to be finished with Christian and Ana, that I went back to my home screen and started Fifty Shades of Grey from the beginning again.  And then two more times after that, not in succession.