She owes him more than she could ever possibly repay in a lifetime. But when Maverick realizes Ainsley has captured his heart, he also realizes that he’s the one indebted to her.
What’s it About?
“You will never mention me or my favors, nor will you disclose what favors we trade. I am a ghost to you.”
Or a genie. I think a genie is way less scary, don’t you?
It’s official. I, Ainsley James, am crazy. Desperate and crazy. It’s the only explanation as to why I’m nauseous, standing outside Maverick Lexington’s door. I mean, it’s possible the stories about his deck of playing cards—with the words IOU scrawled across the back—are just rumors of the ruthless quid pro quo deals he barters. But the flutters in my stomach know better. Maverick is as cold as they come. But, I need one of those cards. I NEED to owe Maverick Lexington a favor…
First Impressions
This is one of those books where you need to understand a little something about yourself beforehand to know whether or not you’re going to enjoy it. If, like me, you have ever described your sense of humor as “quirky” or “weird”, then I have a feeling this romantic comedy is going to be right up your alley. Our female lead character, Ainsley, is a silly character who certainly gets herself into all kinds of trouble and misunderstandings during her college days. She’s the kind of lady who, in the middle of what would undoubtedly be a heated argument in any other read, will hurl out the most childish and preposterous of insults that you can’t help but burst out a guffaw of laughter. There was almost a cartoonish element to her character which was fantastically refreshing. Is it easy to believe that this kind of character would exist in the real world with these kinds of reactions and propensities for embarrassing situations? Heck no, but I don’t care. It’s a fun world to lose yourself in for the day or two it will take you to finish this book. The chapters told from her point of view highlight just how random and disconnected her thought processes can be, and it lends an air of whimsy to her demeanor which is utterly delightful.
Rumor Has it She Burned the Place Down
While we as the audience can be enamored of Ainsley’s frivolity, her fellow classmates don’t necessarily find her quite as charming. When Ainsley almost mistakenly burns down her apartment after finding her boyfriend cheating on her with her roommate (lack of hand-eye coordination plus a candle hurled at said cheating ex equals a bad sign for some cheap curtains), she struggles to find anyone on campus who is willing to provide her with a place to crash. She’s desperate to find a place to live for the rest of the semester, so she turns to the one mysterious man on campus who can seemingly grant you anything, but it will cost you a favor in return. Enter Maverick. The chemistry between these two was fan-freakin’-tastic. From the moment she overturns a plate of food onto his lap to the subsequent morning where she’s knocking on his door for help, Ainsley and Maverick share a quick-witted repartee full of insulting barbs that are the most delicious kind of foreplay. They both get a rise out of pushing each other’s buttons, and you’ll find yourself smiling throughout all of their crazy antics.
What starts off as one seemingly innocent IOU for a place to crash quickly evolves into an endless slew of cards that Maverick doles out for every slight offence and annoyance that Ainsley brings about after crashing into his life. Other folks around campus regard him with a kind of reverent fear, and when Ainsley first turns to him for help she is also intimidated by his overwhelming presence. As they spend more time together in the shared space of his apartment though, she slowly starts to uncover that this puppy dog is more bark than bite. Whereas others look upon his IOUs as both a salvation and a debt, Ainsley quickly realizes she’s racked up so many that she could never possibly pay them all back. So why not have a bit of fun in acquiring them? She’s not afraid to challenge him, get up in his face, snuggle up on his couch with her sea-lion stuffed animal, or even throw some of those IOUs right in the toilet. It was only a matter of time before this surface-level antagonism would turn into a bizarre form of friendship where they both looked forward to their verbal sparring matches, and not long after that before friendship blossomed into something even more.
A Touch of Drama to the Hilarity
This book doesn’t take itself too seriously, yet also isn’t afraid to weave in some relatively serious elements into Ainsley and Maverick’s relationship. From cheating exes to health scares, a secretive side-business to uncovering the truth of how these two really came together in the first place, there’s plenty here which could have turned this read from comedy to drama with a simple snap of the fingers. And while there’s a moment or two where you kind of hold your breath in anticipation to see how things will be resolved, overall there is a sense of fun and playfulness to the entire span of events. There were a few twists and turns here and there which were somewhat easy to predict in part, if not in their entirety.
It did seem somewhat unnecessary to have these characters be college students, as the time they spent in class was essentially nonexistent. And while I enjoyed how each chapter started off with a different rumor surrounding the progression of their relationship, it was somewhat confusing to understand how all of these rumors fit into the overall story being told at this college campus which is supposedly a breeding ground of a rumor mill. In addition, there were a few moments where there was almost too much of an attempt to keep the true details of Maverick’s life a secret, resulting in some unnecessary confusion to how the scenes would play out. Everything does sort of eventually come full circle in the final scene of the book, so while it was nice to not have any questions left unanswered by the end, I could see how some might feel as though saving it all for that climactic end scene was too quick of a resolution for all of those pieces to ultimately come together.
Series: 21 Rumors. I am 100% going to continue on with this series. We are introduced to a slew of delightful side characters that I can’t wait to see get books of their own, from Mav’s brother to his best friends. Sign me up!
Would I befriend the heroine? I think our brands of crazy would mesh quite nicely together. And she seems to be a mac and cheese aficionado, so what’s not to love?
Would I date the hero? Mav is a teddy bear hiding beneath a grizzly bear demeanor. I’d probably be super intimidated upon first meeting, similar to Ainsley’s experience, but if I could reach the point of exchanging biting quips as banterous foreplay, I think we could make it work.
Final Impressions: I loved this book. There, I said it. Is it perfect? Nope. But it’s just the kind of funny, light-hearted, romantic read that you want to have by your side as the waves crash along on your next beach vacation, or as you sit with a frozen daquiri by the pool. If you’re the kind of person who enjoys silly humor mixed with slow burn banter that inevitably leads to explosive sexy fun times, then this is your kind of read. I could even see myself rereading it in the future when I want a good laugh.
Smut Level: It definitely took a while for us to get there, and at one point I seriously questioned if we would even get there at all. But once we do? Hot habanero tamale. We should have known by their sometimes scathing quips that Ainsley and Maverick would be a perfect match when it came to exchanging heated banter in the bedroom. Or…on the couch as we see with this read. We’re only privy to two descriptive scenes, but it’s just the right amount. I will say I was kind of disappointed though that we didn’t get at least one strip-poker scene considering Mav’s penchant for the game.
Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $4.99 Kindle Price. Kristy Marie Books LLC. 266 Pages.