One with You by Sylvia Day

This is supposedly the last book in the Crossfire series. Or so they say! You can never really know for sure, can you?

What’s it About?

Gideon Cross. Falling in love with him was the easiest thing I’ve ever done. It happened instantly. Completely. Irrevocably. Marrying him was a dream come true. Staying married to him is the fight of my life. Love transforms. Ours is both a refuge from the storm and the most violent of tempests. Two damaged souls entwined as one.

We have bared our deepest, ugliest secrets to one another. Gideon is the mirror that reflects all my flaws … and all the beauty I couldn’t see. He has given me everything. Now, I must prove I can be the rock, the shelter for him that he is for me. Together, we could stand against those who work so viciously to come between us. But our greatest battle may lie within the very vows that give us strength. Committing to love was only the beginning. Fighting for it will either set us free … or break us apart.

First Impressions

I can’t really say for sure why this series was dragged out to incorporate five whole books. Well, as a matter of fact, I think we can all guess at the real reason behind that decision ($$$). In my very humble opinion, there was no real need for the last two books in this series. I think the overall story would have fared much better as a trilogy, as was initially intended. Even if there was the need to expand beyond a trilogy, I think books four and five could have easily been condensed into one. It seemed to create an unnecessary drag of the story line.

Welcome to Adulthood

That being said, I feel like we have seen some actual growth for our two main characters. And by growth I mean they’re finally starting to act like adults. Gideon is finally opening up more with Eva, and she isn’t as quick to shun him when he undoubtedly does something stupid. Like hide the fact that someone close to Eva has been seriously injured.

Hands down, my favorite character in this novel was their therapist. Finally, FINALLY! We have someone who asks Eva and Gideon the all important question: “What’s the rush?”. Sure, it’s fantabulous they met, fell in love, and got married in about the span of a month. But why can’t they just live together for a while? Or date?

Surprise!

Towards the end of this novel we see what other readers warned me was a delayed “plot twist”. I mean, I guess it was a twist? But I felt it wasn’t all that interesting of a twist. Maybe I was just ready for the series to be over, or others really built up this surprise, but instead of it being an “Oh, sh*t and crackers” moment, it was more of a “Meh, ok” moment for me.

Series: Crossfire, book 5.

Should you read it? It was nice to finally see a bit of growth and maturity from both Eva and Gideon, although you can’t deny that they both still have their issues. I wouldn’t really say this is a “must-read” series, but there are some hot and sexy moments.

Smut Level: No sex swings in this one! They attempt to stay abstinent until their vow renewal, but we all knew that wouldn’t last.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $9.99 Kindle Price. St. Martin’s Griffin. 482 Pages.

Captivated by You by Sylvia Day

It’s been a while since I read the last book in this series. Honestly, I probably should have taken a moment to do a refresher of the previous novels because, as it turns out, I forgot a LOT of details.

What’s it About? 

Gideon calls me his angel, but he’s the miracle in my life. My gorgeous, wounded warrior, so determined to slay my demons while refusing to face his own. The vows we’d exchanged should have bound us tighter than blood and flesh. Instead they opened old wounds, exposed pain and insecurities, and lured bitter enemies out of the shadows. I felt him slipping from my grasp, my greatest fears becoming my reality, my love tested in ways I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to bear. At the brightest time in our lives, the darkness of his past encroached and threatened everything we’d worked so hard for. We faced a terrible choice: the familiar safety of the lives we’d had before each other or the fight for a future that suddenly seemed an impossible and hopeless dream…

First Impressions

There is a lot of build-up in this book, but not necessarily in a good way. There are a lot of different forces coming together to try and rip Eva and Gideon apart. The problem is that nothing is really resolved at the end of this book. It’s not like everything builds towards one dramatic and exciting climax. Instead, it all just leads you to having to read the next book to find out what happens. Although you are left wondering what will happen next in Eva and Gideon’s story (which is normally a good thing) I couldn’t help but feel disappointed that nothing really changes from the start of the book to the end. There may be drama and arguments in between, but when you get down to it, they are basically in the same position as they were before.

Some Additional Room for Improvement

The author really did an amazing job at describing the inner thoughts and emotions behind the characters. This helps you connect to them, and understand their struggles on a deeper level. However, I felt like the commentary between the characters could have used an added layer of depth. For example, “I f*cking love you”, doesn’t exactly evoke the sense of true passion and feeling which the character was aiming for.

Another area that could have been improved upon sort of ties back into my main complaint with this book in how nothing really changes from start to finish. There’s a repetition which is also evident in the arguments between Eva and Gideon. They are basically rehashing the same fight over and over again throughout the entire novel. He doesn’t share things with her the minute they happen, and when he does tell her she gets pissed that he didn’t tell her sooner. They argue, she makes as if to leave, and then they engage in some rough make-up sex. That…doesn’t seem like the healthiest of relationships, but to each his own.

Series: Crossfire, book 4. I’m already listening to book 5.

Should you read it? I mean, if you’ve already read the first three books you pretty much have to. Although, in my opinion, the plot is pretty stagnant, and doesn’t really move forward all that much.

Smut Level: There is nothing quite more romantic than introducing your girlfriend to a sex swing for the first time. Forget chocolates, roses, or mixed tapes, it’s all in the swing.

Get it on Amazon: Click Here. $9.99 Kindle Price. Berkley Publishing. 369 Pages.

BookExpo Roundup

I’m back from my glorious adventures at BookExpo America! Gather round, I’ve got stories.

The Unexpected

This was my first venture to BEA, so I really didn’t know what to expect. The most common piece of advice I heard for first timers was to wear comfortable shoes. I’ll admit, after three consecutive days of visiting booths and standing in line for autographs, my toes are a little sore. However, my shoulders ache something fierce! I figured I’d get a couple of free tote bags while I was there, but I never imagined I’d acquire about 10 lbs of free books every day. I actually had to buy another suitcase so that I could bring my clothes back home with me. Altogether, I hauled backed 36 books, 28 of which were signed. Now, did I lug back too many books? Ha! There’s no such thing as too many books.

The Highlights

Although each day was an adventure, what with the Bloggers Conference on day 1, and my first booth visits happening on day 2, the highlights of the trip definitely took place on the third and final day. While everyone was lining up bright and early Friday morning to see James Patterson, I was anxiously waiting for the doors to open so I could visit the Romance Writers of America booth for an author autograph signing. Seeing how many people were in front of me to enter the exhibit area filled me with dread (the line stretched around 1/2 of the convention center), as I was worried they’d run out of books by the time I arrived at the booth. But alas, the doors opened promptly at 9:00am, I made a mad dash for my designated booth, and was 5th in line to get my collection of romantic short stories, Premiere, signed by Sylvia Day (Crossfire series), Laura Kaye (Hearts in Darkness), and Monica Murphy (One Week Girlfriend series). That’s right people! I got one book signed by 3 amazing romance authors in one go. To say I got a little emotional will make me sound like a super freak, but ah hell, I got a little emotional!

So that was the first highlight of the day. The second came a bit later in the autographing area, where Laura Kaye was signing one of the novels from her Hard Ink series, Hard to Come By. I’m happy to say that I was actually first in line for the signing. When I saw that one of my favorite romance authors was going to be at BEA, and that I might actually have the opportunity to meet her, I couldn’t believe it. Not only do I think her book, Hearts in Darkness, is hands down the best romance novel to ever feature two people trapped in an elevator, but it was actually one of the first books to really inspire me to start blogging. That might sound strange to some of you, but after reading something I enjoyed so much, and having nobody I knew to share it with, blogging was an outlet for me. Getting not just one, but two novels signed by the impeccable Laura Kaye was an amazing experience, and one I’m not likely to forget. Especially since I have a photo of it!

The Rest of BEA

Overall, I had a lot of fun! Everybody I met was so unbelievably nice, even the authors. I learned some good tips at the Bloggers Conference, especially when it comes to interacting with authors and publishers. Not feeling obligated to provide a review in exchange for a free book was a great piece of advice. The Harlequin booth had some awesome signings, as well as some delightful pics of ruggedly handsome hotties around their boothing area. The Ellora’s Cave booth was hilarious with their calendar models out front to lure in the ladies, and their tagline of, “Helping make Babies since 2000.” After all, romance novels are an aphrodisiac. Love it! Sure, I sort of felt like cattle being herded around in the autographing area, and my shoulders are still sore from carrying around so many books, but it was totally worth it!

Autographing Area

Well hello there!

Next Year BEA is Headed to Chicago!