Defiance

Defiance #1

by Stephanie Tyler

Rebelling against her legacy as the MC's princess, Tru Tennyson escaped the ruthless, male-dominated culture of the Defiance motorcycle club. Three years later, her newfound freedom is ripped away, thanks to a massive hybrid storm that killed millions. Now, in the post-Chaos world of semi-darkness and near-total anarchy where gangs rule, she discovers the dangerous world of Defiance may be the one thing that can keep her safe.

Tru is at the MC's mercy when she's dragged back to her former home … and to the only man she's ever pictured a future with. Caspar is the bastard son of the club's leader, her safe haven when life got rough — and her onetime lover the night she left. When Tru refuses to trade sex for power and be claimed by a rival club leader, she also dares to announce she wants Caspar instead, throwing the MC into turmoil.

Tru's brazen revolt could start a gang war and destroy the club from within. Now both Tru and the MC must wait for Caspar's response … and the inevitable fallout.

Genres: Romance, Dystopia, New Adult, Post Apocalyptic, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Adult

300 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 10, 2013

About the author

New York Times Bestselling author Stephanie Tyler writes what she loves to read - romantic suspense novels starring military heroes and paranormal romance novels novels starring warrior heroes, all complete with happy endings. She also writes as SE Jakes.

And because she's not busy enough, she also co-writes as Sydney Croft. She lives in New York with her husband, her kids and her crazy Weimaraner, Gus.

For more information on Stephanie, please visit www.stephanietyler.com or email her at stephanie@stephanietyler.com.

For more information on SE Jakes, please visit SEJakes.com.

For more information on Sydney, please visit www.sydneycroft.com or email Sydney at sydney@sydneycroft.com

Reviews

[Stacia (the 2010 club) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Think about who you want to be standing next to if the rest of the world went to hell, and you've got your man."

3.5 stars. "Just go with it" is the train of thought which I'll be falling back on during my review. The sub-category of 'biker' romance has been around for a while, but has gained in popularity recently because of the show Sons of Anarchy. My comparisons of Defiance are going to be alongside other MC (Motorcycle Club) romance books, instead of contemporary romance as a whole.

It wasn't so much that they were wrong about what happened behind closed doors, but being a part of the culture and peering through the looking glass were two distinctly different things.

First, I need to get my one major gripe out of the way and it has to do with the post-apocalyptic setting. The only reason I picked up this book is because it wasn't a straightforward contemporary romance. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the natural disasters being used as an explanation for the setting and not much else. If you're going to write post-apocalyptic, write it. Commit to it. Research it. Develop it. Don't use it as a crutch to half-heartedly explain a world in chaos. I had trouble buying the "missing sun" concept because the explanation given was sparse.

Then the Chaos hit and the lights went out, including the sun.

You may ask the reason why I was bummed that the book read more like a contemporary romance than a post-apocalyptic book. That's simple : I wanted to see some survival skills and real problems to overcome - not just the same old misunderstandings, fights, and kidnappings which appear over and over in this type of contemporary book.

Surprisingly enough, I did enjoy my reading choice, even though I didn't quite get what I was hoping for. While I cringed a little at some of the stuff which went on in the first few chapters (for a moment, I didn't know if I would like the female lead when she played into the very role which she was trying to run from), once I got past that, I enjoyed the rest of the book. The drama level was dialed pretty far back for what I've seen from other MC books. You can't/shouldn't get rid of all questionable behavior or completely change the dynamics of a lifestyle, but this author didn't do that, thankfully. However, you can show characters learning to treat each other with respect. And I found more of it here than I'd been expecting.

If you struggled with books like Undeniable or Reaper's Property because of the high-level of angst, or even feel like you've never been able to get on board the Kristen Ashley train because something isn't working for you, there's a chance that you might be surprised at how Defiance takes some of the same vibe as those books and turns it into something less likely to make you roll your eyes at every turn. Sure, there will be some ridiculousness. Absolutely, there will be some alpha behavior. Most definitely, there will be some questionable behavior. But for some reason, it didn't feel as overblown as I've seen it in other, similar books.

Some of this might have to do with the main character Caspar. If you've watched the show Sons of Anarchy and witnessed the main character Jax's struggle to do right by the people he loves, while still managing to keep his club going at the same time, you'll understand Caspar. Right is not always good, and wrong is not always bad. Lines are blurred. The characters do the best that they know how. And I appreciate that about Caspar. He isn't just another egotistical, sex-crazed asshole, even if that's a part of his character. He fights for what he believes in - and what he believes in is his love for Tru.

"I think it could change. I think it should."

I'm going to wrap up with one big disclaimer. If you can't handle reading male chauvinism in any form, even if a big portion of it is coming from side characters, this book would not be one I'd recommend. However, if you can handle some bad behavior as long as it's tempered with true character growth, you might find that this book would work for you, even if you've been burned by MC romances in the past.

Defiance was sexy and intense. I enjoyed the sexual chemistry, and liked the characters well enough, even if I didn't fully connect with them. I'm hoping that Mathias (who was featured as a side character with his own PoV chapters) will get his own book. I haven't read many books with a deaf male lead, and I'd like to see more of this character who is funny and personable. I'll definitely be reading on in this series.

A couple of end notes. This sentence in the book just made me laugh because I don't think it was the author's intent to reference these artists. Or was it?

Hammer and Lil'jon were there too.

Some of the character phrasing and stilted sentences made me laugh because it was too close to KA for comfort. I wonder if these authors all get a similar inspiration for their phrasing, haha.

Tru. Smiling.
Fuckin' Technicolor.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 May 2020: $1.99 on Kindle
5 February 2016: $1.99 on Kindle

Motorcycle Club books are everywhere these days – at least they’re filling up my Goodreads feed. It seems like all my friends are reading and loving them. I know some people in motorcycle clubs in real life, but haven’t ever spent time with them in that capacity, nor do I watch Sons of Anarchy. So this is my first experience with this type of extreme setting. And it is extreme.

It’s also incredibly interesting. This book does a lot. Not only is it a MC (as they’re frequently called) book, but it’s New Adult – both characters are in their early-twenties – and it’s Post-Apocalyptic. I have to say I was a little concerned it was trying to take on too much. That the book would be spread so thin that the story would be lost and garbled. I was most definitely wrong.

The world has suffered a cataclysmic series of events. Ash covers the sky, governments have pretty much collapsed, and the only law is the one you’re willing to enforce yourself. In this time the Defiance motorcycle club is surviving fairly well. Prior to the apocalypse they were well-prepped, with bunkers, firearms, provisions, and a well-built compound with plenty of space to defend and keep. Survival of the fittest seems to be the rule of the game here. Whatever it takes, is a close second.

I admit that I had my doubts about the MC being this organized, prepared, and well-stocked. But as soon as I accepted it for what it was, and accepted that this was how the MCs operated – there was more than one – I fell right into this world where might makes right.

The characters were my favorite part though. Tru was running from a truly horrible childhood before the disasters, but when hard times hit it became too dangerous. Pretty soon she ends up back with her “family” and now they have to figure out what to do with her. I liked Tru, she’s not perfect. She has some serious flaws, like always thinking of running first, but she is willing to recognize them and try to fight for what she wants. Even if it’s herself she’s fighting against. When she decides to go and declare her intention to ‘bond’, and by that I mean basically marry/mate/commit etc. Whatever you want to call it. She becomes someone’s old-lady, in their vernacular, gets tattooed and falls under his protection. Anyway, when she declares that she’s going to bond with the bastard-son of the MC leader – all hell breaks loose.

Casper isn’t sure whether to be happy or pissed when Tru comes back. And when she calls on him to bond with her, it demands a lot of maneuvering and preparing. When Tru left years ago, Casper was barely acknowledged as accepted. Now he’s an Enforcer of the Definance MC, basically the second in command. He’s helping to run the MC and keep things working well for them. Can he accept Tru as his old-lady, save her, and still maintain the safety of the MC? Especially when there’s a rival MC calling for her blood.

As Tru and Casper decide how they’re going to make it not only work, but excel they both learn a lot about themselves and each other. I can’t get too much into the overall story, because I have to admit there are some twists and turns. And a lot of double-dealing, so it seems. I’m, honestly, not sure how anyone trusted anyone else, thought it made for one hell of an exciting ride!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. My first foray into the MC stories that are popping up everywhere. I do admit, that being a pretty big outsider to this kind of culture, some of the references, talk, and slang flew over my head. There are some words that I still don’t know what they mean, but it wasn’t enough to seriously detract from my enjoyment. I’ll definitely be grabbing the next one in the series as this one ended with a BANG! I can’t wait to see what happens next with some of the other characters I really came to enjoy.

Original Notes
3.5 stars - review to come.

Loved the building of the relationship, and the dynamics between the characters.

*review copy provided by editor for honest review*

[LBell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I expected more out of this book. I absolutely loved her navy seals books, as well as her shadow force novels. But with the last few books with the dire needs, and this one as well I felt lost part of the time.

This book was entirely too close to Sons of Anarchy. Father named Abel, main female characters have scar on heart from heart surgery, trouble with main character and the president of the MC, book written out with plans of how the MC should run, ETC. I'm sure there are a lot more.

I got tired of the clipped sentences. I'm not sure how a real MC talks, but I'm sure they can put an I or a you before their sentences.

A lot of this book reminded me of Kristen Ashley. There were quite a few phrases, and ways Casper would act/say things that really made me think that the author read KA's books and liked them, and then Decided to write her own book just like them.

Overall it was an okay read, but if you've read KA or way he'd Sons of Anarchy then you might have a little trouble with it. 2.5 stars for me.

[B.E.Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

An Interestingly confusing book, Yes that is the best way to describe this book. I can honestly say I have never read a book like this before. Defiance is a Distopia/biker romance all mixed together and it worked. Though I have to say the writing style took a lot to get used to once I did I enjoyed it. This book if filled with twists and turns and a lot of mystery all through the book some things are left out but I believe thats just because this is a new series. I'm excited to see who book two will be about because their are so many options of interesting characters that I will be happy no matter who the next book in the series is about. I love the new trend of authors moving away from series with multiple book about the same main characters, and giving us great world building through different characters in each book and I'm so glad that I've found another series that like this. Another thing that I love when done correctly is books written in both the hero and heroines point of view and I can easily say Stephanie Tyler knows how to write from a mans point of view, normally I hate when other point of views are thrown in but in this book it works(though it doesn't hurt that the character with the other point of view is so interesting).

Tru grew up in the Defiance MC and ran the first chance she got, the only thing she regretted was that she had to leave Caspar. When the Chaos hit( a chain reaction of natural disasters) the world as we knew it changed and the people changed right along with it. Now back on Defiance ground Tru is being forced to bond with Roan Silas's(her ex) brother but Tru knows the only man she will ever bond with is Caspar. Caspar grew up the bastard son of Defiance's leader and he has has to fight for any and all respect and he has it. He is Defiance's enforcer and he is not only feared but respected and one people listen to. When he see's Tru is back and she wants him to claim her he knows he can't let her go this time. But some in Chaos aren't happy Tru is back and hidden truths she holds from the past could be devastating to some. Now Caspar has to protect Tru not only from people on the outside but people in Defiance as well. Caspar has held a lot back and left a lot hidden till now and he plans on making the wrongs right. While he and Tru set about making changes in Defiance people from Tru's life outside of Defiance want revenge and the people who should want the best for Defiance may actually be looking out for themselves.

This is one of the hardest books to write a review for because there is just so much going on in this book there are so many twists and turns the minute you think you have it figured out then more is added and then there's another facet to the story that shifts it all completely. To explain it all I spoil the crap out of this book because that's the only way to explain it all. From beginning to end this book if cocked full of deception, secrets, pain, rivalry, hidden agendas, backstabbing, and love and when it's all put together it works so well and creates a great story. This is a book that you have to pay close attention to so that you don't miss something important. I'm excited to not only see who book two is about but to see where Tru and Capsar go from her as well as see how characters from this book continue to grow and move forward.

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars-- I'm a sucker for biker books-- Loved this one...

[Darcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy reading this author, so when I learned that she was writing a new adult book I was intrigued. Then when I saw it was going to be based on a motorcycle club set in a post-apocalyptic world I was really interested, and wow, did the book deliver!

I really liked the world that the book is set in, not only the MC club, but what the world as a whole has gone through. The new lawless world was custom fit to the MC way of life. Both of them are brutal, one where in order to survive you have to rely on your friends and family. I loved that Defiance, both the town and the club, were paranoid bastards, so that when the Chaos hit, they were primed to survive and do it well.

All was not rainbows and puppy dogs in the MC, there were parts that I hated. I hated how the women were treated both by the men and the other women, who seemed more brutal than the men. I also hated how some of the MC members treated the younger ones, and how those in power let it go to their heads. There was all sorts of internal political maneuvering with this one.

At first I didn’t care for that part of the book, including how Tru fit in with all the crap. It seemed like everyone in the club blamed Tru for everything that was going wrong. However it was only as you get further in the book you realize that isn’t true, Tru coming home was the catalyst needed for change, change that was for the good of the MC and Defiance. Like will all big changes there are casualties along the way. Some of them needed to happen, some of them broke my heart.

Caspar was a wild card for me. I wasn’t sure what to think of him at the start, but as the book went along and Caspar’s secrets came out I couldn’t help but to love him and hope that his plans would win out. Caspar has no problem doing the hard things, no problem when things got brutal, his only problem seemed to be with Tru. I hated seeing each one pull from the other, it was only when each was honest with the other that they could understand what was really happening.

I really liked how this one ended, think that most of the people got exactly what they deserved. I find myself very intrigued to see where things are going from here. I want to about if the changes that came about, know more about some of the members, and how Caspar and Tru lead them all.

[HJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure what didn't really work for me. The world building was 'okay,' but I think that the characters came off a bit wooden (well, except for a secondary character - Matthias - whose POV was 1st person, for some weird reason).

Interesting concept, though, to have a post-apocalyptic motorcycle club.

2.75 stars, and I'm not entirely certain I'll be anxious to read on in the series (at least, I 'think' it's supposed to be a series).

[✿kawehi.reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

"I’m not going to survive you. I’ve made it through war, the Chaos...but you’ve always been my goddamned Kryptonite."

"Defiance" just didn't defy the odds to prevent it from ending up on my dump list of motorcycle reads. Honestly, the plot was boring and a complete train wreck. I must have skimmed and skipped over 80 percent of the book and only paid attention to the Tru and Caspar parts.

As for Tru and Caspar, well, aren't they just a pair of misfits? Both are stubborn, hard headed outcasts coming together and lighting the MC world on fire.

Tru's character was very plain Jane for a rebellious woman trying to find herself in a male-dominated club and world. I don't have much to say about her so I won't even try.

Caspar, was super smexy and an alpha male. He's tattooed, pierced (nipples and his c*ck) and is a total man whore.

Pierced. Caspar’s nipples were both pierced with silver bars through them. They showed through the tight T-shirts he wore, maybe the most sensuous thing she’d ever seen. His c*ck was pierced too, according to the rumors (silver ring in his c*ck).

He has no reservations when it comes to public sex, and in fact, prefers is as it leads to a fast lay, no lingering attachments, and up keeps his "8 ball patch" (what you earn from public displays of sex) . That is, with every female except for Tru. Tru, of course, is 'special' to him.

Truth was, he didn’t like any of these women enough to be with them in private. Public sex was easier—he didn’t have to deal with anything but coming and the women were all too happy to provide the show. But Tru was cool and she didn’t do shit like public fucking.

Although I don't get what pulls Caspar and Tru's relationship together (other than them being like the scum of their MC club) and what makes them so 'in love' or 'dedicated' to each other I did think it was super hot when Caspar would go all possessive and dominant on her.

“Gonna fuck away memories of anyone else. Tried to do it the night you left—wanted to imprint myself on you.” “You did.” “But tonight...this isn’t about the bond. That comes later. This night here is my erasing all the goddamned past. Fucking it out of you.”

I also liked when he got all territorial over Tru when discussing her with an old boyfriend of hers.

"Silas stepped right up to him, toe to toe. “What the fuck? You knew how much I missed her. You knew and you didn’t—”
I knew and I made her mine, Silas. Took her out of here, made love to her under the stars and made goddamned good and sure to ruin her for anyone else. Tru’s mine. Always was. And trust me, she didn’t fight me at all.”

I guess through and through, what kept me reading this story was just the sex scenes and the steamy displays of male dominance on Tru. Make no qualms, that although I find it hedonistic and sexist, it is extremely fascinating to read in print!

Other than that, as I had said in the beginning, "Defiance" just wasn't for me.

Some hot scenes:
(A shortened excerpt of a public BJ from Fiona)
"He likes his dick sucked after he fights,” Fiona whispered in her ear.
Tru stared at her, unblinking, and Fiona smirked, shrugged and walked through the crowd and over to Caspar, who’d ducked through the ropes and balanced on the stool outside the ring. She ran a hand along his biceps and he watched her carefully, warily.
And then he nodded, and Fiona turned around, gave Tru a smug look and got on her knees. Pulled his shorts down and got in between his thighs.
His eyes closed for the briefest second and his expression was almost pained. And then his icy blue eyes opened and his gaze locked on her (Tru) and wouldn’t let go.
She was mesmerized by how hot and dirty all of it was as she stood, sheltered by the crowd watching the next fight, eyes locked to Caspar’s.
No one else was really watching—public sex was commonplace in the MC, really almost expected. She wondered if Caspar ever had sex in private. If he’d even want to.
Caspar raised his brows and glanced down and then back at her, a question in his eyes.
He was inviting her to come between his legs. A bold and completely insolent move that could get him killed.
And he didn’t seem to care.

(Two Tru & Caspar scenes)
1)She didn’t expect what happened next, but Caspar was on his knees on the hard tile. He murmured, “Pretty baby,” before he buried his face between her legs.
He licked her cleft while he looked up at her, his icy blue eyes wicked. His hands steadied her, holding her hips and she had nothing to grab onto but him. One hand curled in his hair, tugging and tightening her grip as his tongue grew more insistent. She looked down; he looked up at her and licked her cleft in a long stroke, and then pressed his tongue there hard.

2)Only then did she remember that they weren’t exactly alone. There was a group of people who’d been drinking and partying while waiting for the sun to come out. They were close and maybe not exactly watching...but they could.
She went to pull away from him but couldn’t. His body pressed hers, covered it as his hand went between her legs outside of her pants and rubbed. He undid a couple of buttons on her shirt, nudged down the tank top she wore underneath to suck on a nipple.
She was going to come, right here.

My favorite two-liner from "Defiance":
"You're going to undo me.
And then I'll put you back together."

[Michelle Leah Olson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our Review, by LITERAL ADDICTION'S Pack Alpha - Michelle L. Olson:
*eARC provided by the Author in exchange for an honest review

Defiance is set in a dystopian world where natural disasters have wiped out most of the natural land mass and forced people to find ways to survive. Motorcycle Clubs (MC) have taken ownership of the main surviving territories and their primary money makers, and are functioning as governing bodies and rivals. Like current & known biker gang lifestyles, it's 'members' and 'by invite' only, and definitely rough around the edges.

Our hero, Caspar, is a member of the Defiance MC - the current Enforcer actually - and son to the President. He's also a known playboy and assumed slacker, but there is SO much more to him than meets the eye...

Tru, our heroine, was a member of Defiance growing up. Daughter to the Enforcer at the time, she survived a wickedly abusive childhood and took the first opportunity that presented itself to get out of the life. Unfortunately, life PC (post-Chaos) doesn't lend well to being on one's own, and she's forced back into the MC in order to survive.

Tru showing back up in Defiance causes all sorts of problems - there are debts to rival MCs that must be paid, assumed slights that must be smoothed over, she's viewed as an outsider because she left, yet still perceived as the Princess that she was born... And then there's her relationship with Caspar, it's nothing if not complicated. She has always known she was meant for him, yet they only shared one passionate night together - the night that he left for the military and she struck out on her own - and while things were complicated then within the MC, they're even more complicated now.

Thing of note: Defiance is classified as New Adult. I honestly wouldn't shackle it that way. Simply put, it was a dark, sexy, surprising, wonderfully fresh, and enjoyable read! Some kudos...

*The world was solidly built, though I will admit that the beginning confused me a bit and I did read it twice to properly get the lay of the land. That's been the case with several debut dystopian novels for me though, it simply takes some time to set things up in that first book and without writing about the entire event that caused the current situation, it's not an easy feat to set the stage in limited number of pages, so I tend to want to make sure I understand before I get too far into the story.
*The characters were well rounded and instantly compelling, and the way that Stephanie switched between points of view with our leading characters and first person for Mathias, a mute soldier who comes to Defiance with his buddy and ends up being Caspar's right hand men, was incredibly unique and pulled me in even further.
*The intrigue of the story itself was amazing! I'm usually pretty good about seeing things coming, but even though I did foresee one of the secrets that was revealed, Defiance surprised me on more than one occasion!
*The romance was S T E A M Y! :)

In short, I give Defiance 4 1/2 Skulls and would definitely recommend it! To whom you ask? Well... anyone, but especially Dystopian fans, Romantic Suspense Readers, and Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance groupies because it had a very 'Shifter' feel for me even though it was completely non-supernatural. This is definitely something fresh to check out!

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Prelim copy provided by editor

When Angela James asked me if I was interested in reading a New Adult Post-Apocalyptic MC book, I knew I was in even before I said yes. That combination alone is enough for me to want to read it without having read the blurb. Learning that the author was Stephanie Tyler at a later date definitely added more points in their favor.

DEFIANCE is the first in a new series that breaks all the rules and makes new ones. The heroine, Tru Tennyson is an MC princess, the token woman in a male-dominated culture. She escaped for awhile before a hybrid storm killed millions and forced her to return home and to the man she hoped to avoid.

Caspar is an interesting character and probably what intrigued me most about this book. As the bastard son to the MC’s leader, he has his own power in the ranks and you definitely feel his commanding presence throughout the entire book. He was one I was always looking forward to reading.

DEFIANCE pushes the bar a little bit with the MC culture. There is sex for power, violence and the start of a gang war so if you love the MC culture and the chaos that surrounds it, you are definitely getting that in loads with this book. That being said, this book doesn’t really feel that much of a New Adult book compared to others I’ve read simply because there is so much going on already that there isn’t that search for self-discovery or self-actualization as the main focus. It is there, but it isn’t as prominent as say, a New Adult Contemporary where character problems are the main conflict. DEFIANCE is far more multi-layered and complex, providing readers with something that will sweep them off their feet!

In a promising start to a new look in New Adult, DEFIANCE is taking the best elements of Fiction and creating a hybrid read that stands out like a gem.

[Books & Vodka Sodas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I could say that I loved this book. However, I didn't totally fall in love with any of the characters. I think they were written properly for the tone, and perhaps this just isn't my genre. I wasn't totally on the same page with the way they all spoke. I have seen a few SOA episodes and I don't remember any of them talking in that clipped way of speaking.

The setting just put me off. First we are just told something horrible happened to change the world, but at the same time we aren't actually told what caused this until about 60% through the book I would say. I thought it was an EMP, but it turned out to be an asteroid hitting the earth.

I had partial respect for Tru, but then we had to deal with Casper that was this barbaric figure slamming on his chest asking her to trust him but not SHOWING her he could really be trusted. I can handle the violence, I can even handle the reality of how women were treated in this setting. There was just something that forced me to detach from the whole story. I think it was Casper, although written as that bad boy Alpha, he was too detached from Tru. Yeah, she left, why would begrudge ANYONE that wasn't down with living that lifestyle? I just didn't get it. I would run too.

Stay and be a hole and a punching bag. Leave and have a real life. Yeah the real world has bad stuff in it but they were acting like being away from the MC was worse. I'm sorry, but not in my world, even with a zombie apocalypse I would rather be with my own family than and MC. Maybe it will get better now that Casper is in charge, but I felt he was cold for the sake of trying to be more alpha. I didn't buy is 'caring' for her. I felt like the whole end game was for his own personal gain and revenge.

I got book two on netgalley, I'm hoping we see a little more light at the end of tunnel than a bunch of men just acting with cold disconnect. This wasn't a win for Alpha male for me. Although the writing is strong for me, I felt like it was trying to hard to make a bad boy.

[Kaetrin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why I read it: I received a review copy from the publisher. I like New Adult and I liked Motorcycle Man and Reaper's Property. I liked Beyond Shame. So, this one, combining a motorcycle club, a post apocalyptic world and young adult protagonists looked promising.

What worked for me (and what didn't): Unfortunately, for me, the book didn't live up to its promise. I found the world building confusing and... not terribly believable and I think in the end, the author's style just doesn't work for me. She is a bestselling author so there are obviously plenty of people who like her style just fine but I wasn't as engaged as I'd hoped I'd be.

Read the rest of the review here: http://kaetrinsmusings.blogspot.com.a...

[Formerly Known as Spoiler W · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Had the feel of Kit Rocha's Beyond series and Sons of Anarchy. It kept me entertained so that's a bonus and I'll definitely be looking forward to the next book.

[Christina (A Reader of Fictions) · Rating 3 out of 5]

To explain why I read a romance novel with a dude on a motorcycle on the cover, I'm going to need to talk a bit about BEA. On Wednesday, I went to the Harlequin High Tea, and had a really great conversation with one of their editors. She asked me what I liked to read and ended up pitching Defiance to me, and, when she told me that her background included the Feminist Press, I was curious. Getting a review request for the same title when I got back convinced me that I should fit it into my schedule. It really surprised me how much fun I had reading Defiance, even if I do have some significant issues with the treatment of women in the novel.

Defiance falls into that subcategory of dystopian/post-apocalyptic literature where, in the event of an apocalypse the role of women reverts to that of a possession, useful for sex, cooking and cleaning. While I hate how common this basic premise is, I do think there's a reason it crops up so much. I wish I could say I didn't find that a believable vision of humanity's response to an apocalypse, that all the progress society's made in valuing women wouldn't be erased, but I can't. Plus, in Defiance, it' s set within a Motorcycle Club, which, from what little I know, isn't exactly a woman-centered place to begin with, so everything would be played up more strongly there.

Motorcycle clubs don't interest me at all, perhaps because of the sorts of gender roles and idiotic machismo that can be found within these pages in spades. Plus, the general lack of education in most of these characters - what intelligence there is is generally of the street smarts variety. There's a lot of slang, and antiquated ideas that women are to be owned and protected. The lucky women in the club are bonded to a man, belong to him, his to command, fuck and beat as he desires. She's his bitch (this phrasing is used). I'm not going to lie: I hate this shit. It's not cool at all. Being some guy's possession isn't romantic, and I don't like seeing Tru enjoying that.

However, the general trend throughout the plot is Tru and Caspar trying to improve the MC (Motorcycle Club). They want to stop the abuse of women, and make it so that women can hold more positions within the MC. Still not exactly a feminist read, but I can live with positive progress being made. It also helps that Tru and Caspar are really supportive of one another, and both very honest. Caspar doesn't hide everything from Tru, and he obviously would never hurt her or force her to do anything she wasn't comfortable with.

You might be wondering why it's set in a MC. Well, supposedly Defiance, the MC, was prepared for an apocalypse, building underground tunnels, sun lamps, means of getting water and growing food, etc. I honestly don't know enough about MCs to say whether that's realistic, so I just rolled with it. In this world, it's largely the rough who have survived: the military, cops, criminals, bikers. Soft, sweet people had more trouble surviving the Chaos, a world where killing to survive might be a necessity. Tyler doesn't hesitate to include violence, and it's definitely a sufficiently dark vision of the future.

Tyler also uses a really interesting narrative technique. One character, Mathias, has a first person perspective, where the rest is written in third person limited. Mathias isn't one of the main characters, so it's a unique choice. Mathias also happens to be unable to speak, so it's ironic that he's the only one given voice in the novel. Also, I really like Mathias, so I'm hoping he'll be a main character in one of the later books.

The reason I kept reading and am rating this so highly despite my serious concerns about the portrayal of the women, which is definitely still as beneath men at the best of times, is that it was really fun to read. I was flipping pages really quickly and curious to find out where it was going. Even with everything, I'm definitely planning to read the next book in the series. Of course, I'll be hoping to see more empowerment of women as the series continues, and if I don't the ratings may suffer. For those who are less particular about relationship dynamics in romance, Defiance will no doubt be a fun read for you.

[Rashika (is tired) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual Rating 3.5

NA hasn’t been a very favorable ‘genre’ (I put the quotation marks because I know there has been some debate as to what classifies as a genre and what not) for me. Most of my experiences have been pretty bad. This book however piqued my interest. A post-apocalyptic book that focuses on a motorcycle club? Count me in.

Okay so I only read this because the strange combination of the two was pretty intriguing. So many things could have gone wrong! It could have been filled with TSTL horny characters whose lives revolve around each other and nothing else (which does happen a lot of NA so you cannot blame me). But as it turns out this book was pretty good.

I haven’t read a lot of motorcycle club books nor do I watch the famous “Sons of Anarchy”. So my knowledge is next to nothing when it comes to the whole Motorcycle Club thing. Even with my inexperience it felt like the author did a pretty good job with it. The reasoning, how it all started, what it had become, everything. The world of Defiance seemed pretty real to me.

The post-apocalyptic part however could have used a lot more development. For the most part I was a little confused about what had actually happened. Oh it was mentioned but it just seemed more like a pillar than part of the story. I also happen to be a little confused about what happened in the 3 years she was away.

The main characters were actually WAIT FOR IT the best part of the book and I mean this in a good way. I was pleasantly surprised by the two, by their maturity. They are both pretty young but they act like adults, a lot of this can of course be contributed to their childhoods (is that a word?) but I just love how they aren’t just angst filled characters.

Tru was forced to run away from home at the age of 16. It was either stay or die at the hands of her father. She had finally had enough and so with the help of Caspar she ran away. She is returned by the rival MC beaten up three years later, after her father has died. Right off the bat things start going crazy with her return. She spent the past (year?) with the rival club so people are vary of her but since her father was well respected they don’t kick her out immediately, instead preparations are made for her mating with the president’s youngest son. To escape that horrid fate, she asks Caspar to be her mate. That was when I first started appreciating her; I always like a main character who can stand up for herself. Weak, Tru was not. It’s evident in all her actions, she is not afraid to stand up if it means backing up what she believes in.

Caspar was a pretty mysterious character. Half of the time you don’t even know his motifs. What is he planning inside that big brain of his? He’s pretty elusive. One of his best qualities is how passionate he is about the club. He wants to change things for the better but even he knows that everything cannot change, some things will remain the way they are.

Them together makes for a good romance. It isn’t an angst filled relationship. It’s kind of clear even in the beginning that the two have strong feelings for each other but they need to work on trusting one another and so the unravel each other, learning the others secrets and being supportive.

I am not exactly sure about the plot though, the book itself was a quick read but the plot could have used some work. Half of the time I wasn’t even sure what the whole thing was about.

In the end, the book makes for a hell of a journey and was just what I needed after attempting to read a book that didn’t work so well for me.


This review has also been posted on my blog

[Reanell Tisdale · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read S&M Book Obsessions review for Defiance and decided that this was moving up to the top of my endless TBR list. And I was not disappointed.

What is it about biker books? I just LOVE them! And I'm always up for more hot biker men!

" You know what the biggest difference between the MC and the outside world? Out there, women think they want a wild man, and then they try to domesticate him. Make him their house cat. In here, you know not to bother. Never gonna civilize me, babe. Shouldn't want to. Civilized men can't make you come like that."

That right there is my all time favorite quote from a book, because its the truth. Women want the wild man, but then when they get the wild man they expect them to change. Well not Caspar(awesome name for a biker by the way) he was 100% hot biker male who happened to enjoy public sex. And tru loved him for just being him.

This isn't your typical biker book, this one is Dystopian, and has so many twists and turns, although sometimes those twists and turns made me dizzy and was hard to keep up with. But it wasn't enough to make me want to stop reading it. It was quite the opposite actually, I couldn't put it down.

I grew to love each character in the story, and I bonded with the characters going through the emotions with them while reading. Tru was great, she had so many reasons to just give up and run, but Caspar helped her by being exactly what she needed.

I really enjoyed when we got to hear from Bishop and Mathias. The bond these 2 men had was amazing. And I'm hoping that Stephanie Tyler will write books for some of the main characters because everybody needs more biker book boyfriends to love!

I'm going with 4.5 stars!

[Thenia · Rating 2 out of 5]

A dystopian world where Motorcycle Clubs and gangs are mostly running things, a former MC princess who returns to the fold and the man she'd been in love with for years. Harsh world, harsher people, traumatic pasts and mostly bleak futures.

This book is categorized as romance, but there's nothing romantic about it. Women have reverted to being property and treated like such and are glad for the "protection" they receive.

I found the whole story depressing and the supposed love between the characters gave me no good feels.



The series continues with Redemption but I'll be skipping it...

[WhiskeyintheJar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely suffered from first book in a series syndrome. The flow of the writing and story took me a long time to get used to (more than halfway through book). Also kind of felt like I missed the hero/heroine falling in love as they had known each other before and were hooking up for the second time. Look, I'm not even going to try and summarize this book, the plot is way to cray cray for me to sum up in a couple sentences. Suffice to say meteors hit earth, MCs run the show, and Susan B. Anthony would not be a happy camper.
I adore Stephanie Tyler's other military series (never read the Dire series) and at times I could feel her writing style trying to push through this convoluted mess. If this wasn't about the new trending topic of bikers I would have bet money this was one of her first written books.
The characters individually were interesting enough and even though the plot read like a crazy straw I still liked (not enthusiastically mind you) it.
If you can make it through the first half of the book you'll probably find it interesting. I did and I'm going to be waiting and buying the second book in the series to see what and where these characters end up in this wackadoodle world.

Luna and Rebel anyone? (Although I did raise an eyebrow to the line of Mathias (oops or Bishop?) checking up on Luna a lot towards the end of the book. Interesting.)

[Dani C. (Polly's Place) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have heard some awesome stuff about Stephanie Tyler’s books so I was happy to get a chance at reading this first book in her New Adult series called Defiance. This story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where only the strongest and toughest can survive. Those people are the ones who belong to Motorcycle Clubs. This is a place where men rule by the fist and women are supposed to accept that they can never be in control.

For me this book was a bit shocking at times. It is dark with a lot of violence and a lot of very steaming sex; I will admit this book took me out of my comfort zone. The writing is what held me there and wouldn’t let me go. The plot was different than anything I have read before I was just amazed at how much I loved it.

As for the characters, these are imperfect people who have deep feeling and are trying to survive in a harsh world. Their struggles and the mistakes they make them feel very real and easy to connect too. I may not have agreed with everything they did but I understood the motivation and the reasoning behind it. In the end Tru and Casper had stolen my heart with their compelling story.

If you are looking for a fresh new Dystopia, Suspense, Romance to read please don’t hesitate to pick this one up! Since this book was so good I know I will be adding the next book in this series to my TBR list!

[Heather andrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone knows I love a good MC book, but this one didn't really do it for me. Don't get me wrong the writing was good, but something just wasn't there. Caspar he kinda seems heartless in the beginning, "Doctor's already been here to check you out - gave you the all clear for now. She'll be back though. Said you need rest. Givin' you fluids to pump the s*** Paddy gave you out of your system." Tru and Caspar do have a lil' somethin', somethin' going on, "I chose my man. The rest will follow." Caspar always tries to be a harda** but you can tell he's sweet on his woman, "you think you could handle it, pretty baby?" And he's all for protecting her, "I'm telling you, Silas - you ever lay a hand on Tru, I'll effing kill you." With the ending I could tell there's going to be another book as I don't think the story is quite finished yet.

[Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars
Better than just okay but I didn't like it enough to round it up to 4 stars.

For some reason I really struggled with this story. I picked it up and put it down 2 or 3 times before finally decided to pick it up, start again, and persevere to the end.

I had a hard time connecting to, or caring about, any of the characters. The whole premise for the cause of the 'Chaos' wasn't explored in any depth, so fell short for me and didn't make a whole lot of sense.

The story obviously wasn't all bad, it just didn't make a whole lot of sense to me, so the issues are mine to own :)

[Skye Blue ☆*~ﾟლ(´ڡ`ლ)~*☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

hmmmmm...3 1/2
This was better than average on biker books...but not at the top list though.

I enjoyed it. The whole choas world needed a little more explanation.
At first it seemed like the biker groups were the ones pretty much in charge of the land...but then, there are still police and military, so I was having a hard time figuring out how things stood.

I think I will be picking up the next book. I'd like to hear some of the other members stories.

[E_bookpushers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joint review originally posted here: http://thebookpushers.com/2013/06/10/...

Publisher: Carina Press
Publish Date: June 10th
How we got this book: ARC from the publisher

Rebelling against her legacy as the MC’s princess, Tru Tennyson escaped the ruthless, male-dominated culture of the Defiance motorcycle club. Three years later, her newfound freedom is ripped away, thanks to a massive hybrid storm that killed millions. Now, in the post-Chaos world of semi-darkness and near-total anarchy where gangs rule, she discovers the dangerous world of Defiance may be the one thing that can keep her safe.



Tru is at the MC’s mercy when she’s dragged back to her former home … and to the only man she’s ever pictured a future with. Caspar is the bastard son of the club’s leader, her safe haven when life got rough — and her onetime lover the night she left. When Tru refuses to trade sex for power and be claimed by a rival club leader, she also dares to announce she wants Caspar instead, throwing the MC into turmoil.



Tru’s brazen revolt could start a gang war and destroy the club from within. Now both Tru and the MC must wait for Caspar’s response… and the inevitable fallout.

This blurb came from the author’s website.

Lou: When I saw the reveal for this book I was pretty excited as I’m a fan of the MC trope that’s popular at the moment. This also looked different with a dystopian take that looked raw and gritty. Unfortunately, I wasn’t a huge fan of this book and that’s because of the world building which was quite weak. I also had issues with the gratuitous violence which seemed senseless and over-the-top. And whilst the sex scenes were great, I had a hard time routing for both the hero and the heroine. The heroine had misery heaped upon her time and time again, and after a while it became annoying.

E: I heard a bit about this from buzz on twitter and again at RT so I eagerly leaped at the chance to read it. It was post-apocalyptic, NA, and motorcycle club (MC). I am relatively new to the whole MC trope–having only read one other MC book before, never watched any of the TV shows, or joined in the crack reading of another author. I will admit that for the first book in a series I give some latitude for world-building because it is a difficult balance to strike between the world and the characters. Once I got past my initial worry that the set-up was going to be too close to another series that I absolutely love I fell right into Tyler’s book. I did have a bit of confusion regarding the timeline for the hybrid storm because I failed to read the back cover blurb but overall I really enjoyed reading it.

There was certainly a lot of violence in this book and a significant portion of it was directed towards women but as I continued reading I saw that there was the intent within the club to change the status quo. I did wish that Tru started seeing the underlying politics sooner but given her reasons for leaving and her lack of current insider knowledge a significant portion of ignorance was very understandable.

Lou: The woman were treated as a sub-par species and I the violence and intent towards Tru was awful. It made me a little sick to my stomach and I had a hard time routing for the book because of the world-building. I wish we saw more details and background on the world and the hybrid storms. Instead it was briefly mentioned and it didn’t play a part in the way the novel was shaped which disappointed me. It was all character and no world-building and if you’re gonna have a dystopian setting, it needs to be showcased. I think the romance between Casper and Tru was the strongest point in the book and I enjoyed reading about their relationship and the smexy times. Casper was a very hard-nosed character, and the reasoning for behind the way he acts made sense during the reveal later on in the book.

I mentioned the violence and I had a major problem with how it was played out, especially at the beginning of the book where Casper murders people in brutal way that almost had me DNFing right there.

E: I was more focused on the human dynamic then the hybrid storms. Yes I am hoping that Tyler expands that in future books but I didn’t need them to be the center of this story. I was extremely leery at the beginning when it appeared as if Tru was going to be forced to marry someone she despised and he would determine if she lived or if she died a horrible death. I liked how she gambled on a very old friendship but had to hope and trust that somehow things would work out. Unlike you, Lou, I liked the beginning when Casper decided to eliminate several people. To me they deserved it because of their treatment towards women. We, women, can do a huge amount but in my opinion in some societies we also need men to push for the same changes and that was Casper making a statement towards change. In their particular society, violence is the ultimate argument or emphasis on a verbal statement. After that particular scene I sat back to see how far this change would permeate.

I also enjoyed Casper and Tru’s relationship and their smexytimes. It was fascinating watching them connect the past with the future and try to bridge the gap between them. Both Casper and Tru had their secrets which made me enjoy reading their interactions even more.

Lou: For me, rather than the case of whether or not they deserved it, I thought with the unique setting it would be a change of scene of extreme violence and violence against women. I just felt there was no escape from it. The positive was Casper wanting to make a change in the club and he had to do it inside and by waiting patiently for so many years. I enjoyed the romance but I soon got exasperated by the misery that was heaped on Tru. Her story got worse and worse and by the end it lost authenticity to me because I wanted to see Tru become a strong character without all these horrible events happening to her that heaped upon the sympathy.

E: Interesting perspective. I actually liked seeing how Tru was able to rise above her past and try to manipulate her future by bending the rules. I also liked how she never gave in and accepted “her place” but continued to fight and encourage others to stop tolerating the status quo. Like you, I really enjoyed how Casper waited patiently gathering strength and support so when he made his move to change he would be able to make it stick. I found it fascinating to see the divide between some of the old crew and those who had a different dream for the future. Yes, the old crew kept them alive and gained a place of power but I really didn’t like their methods.

I am also super curious about the two ex-military guys who showed up. Yes Tyler gave us a taste of them but I want more **grin**.

Lou: Despite my criticisms for most of this review, I am looking forward to future characters and hopefully the world-building can be expanded on in future books. Sadly for me, Defiance didn’t work and I had hard time engaging with the characters, despite the romance, and I didn’t like the violence that made me put the book down on several occasions.
I give Defiance a C-

E: Overall I enjoyed reading Defiance. There were a few things that bothered me but I was caught up in wondering how Tru was going to survive and if Casper was going to achieve his goals. I do hope that Tyler does provide more attention to the causes of the apocalypse because I think has a lot of potential. I look forward to seeing where Tyler goes with her next installment.

I give Defiance a B+/A-

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark, savage and wickedly sexy, DEFIANCE delivers on its promise. It brings readers into a post-apocalyptic world ruled by violence, dominated by those strong enough, brutal enough, organized enough, to stay in power. It takes them into the world of the Defiance Motorcycle Club where women are possessions and battles are often fought to the death.

When Tru Tennyson left home, looking to escape a life she wasn’t sure she wanted and a father whose brutality wasn’t reserved only for his job, she thought she’d never return. But when the world fell apart and life outside the MC became more dangerous than the one in it, going back was her only option.

Even though it meant turning to a rival Club’s leader to bring her back. And even though it meant she would likely be killed or be forced to face a fate much worse than death. But she had to try.

Because she didn’t want to be some prize for the leader of the Kill Devils. She knew she wouldn’t be able to survive on her own. And she didn’t want what happened in her past to catch up with her.

But gambling on Caspar, the Club’s Enforcer, to stand up for her was risky. She had no guarantee he’d be willing to put everything on the line for her safety. She had no idea if he cared whether she lived or died. The odds weren’t in her favor. And after seeing him again, she was certain she bet wrong.

Told from three of its characters’ points of view - Tru, Cas and Mathias - DEFIANCE offers an exciting look at author Stephanie Tyler’s post-Chaos world where daylight is rare and violence is abundant. It is a story about survival - in the post-apocalyptic world and in the MC. About loyalty - to friends, lovers, the Club. About change - for outdated rules, for oppressive views. And at its core it is a love story.

The author created two incredibly appealing main characters who are strong on their own but even stronger together. Tru is a kick-ass female protagonist. She is smart. She is a survivor. And she isn’t above doing what has to be done in order to survive. She knows her mind and she isn’t afraid to speak it. But she also knows when to keep silent. Although a former “princess” of the MC she is not looking for a prince.

Cas is not a typical “bad boy” male protagonist. He is not hiding a soft interior under a hard exterior. He is not a hero in disguise. He takes dangerous to an entirely different stratosphere. And he makes absolutely no apologies for who he is or what he does.

DEFIANCE is a fantastic start to this new series. The story is deliciously dark. The world is refreshingly different. The setting is harsh, gritty, brutal. The characters rough, cruel, deadly, but also brave and fiercely protective. All of which makes for a wildly entertaining read.

On a personal note...

I knew I was going to love this book. The description screamed that DEFIANCE was my kind of book. It was dark. It was sexy. It was delectable. The world was dangerous. The characters were fierce, ruthless, violent, deadly.

I did not want the story to end. Which makes me really glad that this is a series and not a standalone. Even if the next book focuses on different characters.

I loved meeting Cas and Tru. I loved getting to see the story from each of their perspectives and was intrigued by a third character’s point of view that was offered. I loved getting peeks at their history from before Tru ran off. I loved getting to see what their lives as members of a Motorcycle Club were like pre-Chaos.

It took me a couple of chapters to get comfortable with the clipped style the author used for the dialogue and for the characters’ thoughts. But once I figured out the rhythm and got used to their vernacular everything began to flow. It was the perfect style to use and it fit the story so well.

The world was fascinating. It held me captive from the moment I began reading. It was one I haven’t visited in any of the many stories I’ve read. My typical post-apocalyptic reads involve looking in from the outside on violent motorcycle “gangs” and not being plunged into their world. It was exciting. It was shocking. It was wicked.

But it was the characters that I was most drawn to. I loved that each and every one of them was strong. I loved that even though Tru needed help to get out of her situation, she wasn’t a damsel in distress. She was totally kick-ass. And while Caspar may have been her one weakness, she was also his.

Seeing the story, and their story, come together from each of their perspectives was awesome. It allowed me to get to know who they were in a way I know I never would have been able to had this story been told from just one of their point’s of view. The face each of them presented would never have clued me in on what they were really thinking at those key moments in each other’s lives. So I’m so glad to have had peeks into both of their thoughts.

But I wasn’t too sure what to make of Mathias’ point of view when it was introduced into the story. I wasn’t sure why I was seeing the story from his perspective. And while I absolutely adored him, I am still not entirely sure seeing things through his eyes was absolutely necessary, even though it appears that the sequel will focus on him and his friend Bishop, a character who is a bit of a mystery.

The Motorcycle Club culture is one I am not in the least bit familiar with. So I can’t say how closely the Defiance MC resembles a real one or whether it was modified significantly to fit in with a world that had been ravaged by storms. I’m guessing the general structure is the same, but that everything was amped up. Which made it incredibly appealing.

This story is not one without violence. It was bloody. The characters were on edge, the world was on edge, so things tended to escalate pretty quickly. And Tru’s arrival put things that were already set into motion on the fast track.

But I loved following along as all the pieces came together and the end game was revealed. And no, I’m not going to say whose end game that is. Or whether they won.

Power struggles - internal and external to the Club. Secrets. Betrayal. Brutality. Sex. A love story. DEFIANCE brought it all. And I want more.


Original comments.

My first official new adult and I loved it. Strong female and male mains. Loved the world. Fascinating and violent. Can't wait to read more in this series and from this author.

Definitely dark, gritty and sexy. Took a few chapters to get familiar with the style of the writing but loved it. Fit well with the story and characters.

Review TK.

[Megan Riverina Romantics · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 2.5/5
Heat Rating: 3/5
Narrator Performance: 3/5

Everything about this was simply average for me. I'm not even sure what I should rate it since I didn't quite enjoy it. There were huge amounts of the story that was straight out of the Sons of Anarchy script. I mean, my goodness. The main character's (Caspar) father's name was Abel. In SOA the main character's son was named Abel. Caspar had a journal that his father wrote. Same as Jax in SOA. And they both read it while on the roofs of buildings. Oh and let's not forget that Caspar's dad was killed by his close friend in order to run the club. Yet another thing that happened in SOA. There's just too many similarities and since this isn't fan fiction that's just not right.

I think the most redeeming part of the book was the secondary characters. Bishop and Matthias were great and I loved the way they were together. They weren't especially jaded and were funny. Plus supportive and loyal. The went to Defiance simply for Caspar and they stood by him from day one.

This was my first "real" MC book and I'm not sure if I like the genre. I've always been sceptical of it and this read didn't help any. I definitely won't be continuing with the series.

About the narrator...
I found the narration to simply be ok. I've heard worse and I've heard better. Kudos for trying to define the characters with slightly different voices but it wasn't enough IMO. Plus she also forgot to change the voice with the characters sometimes. Her pace was good though I would have liked some acting.

[Lindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Thoughts:


Defiance, by Stephanie Tyler, is vastly different from anything I've read thus far. It hooked me with a dark, twisted, and crazy reality. It had a post-apocalyptic setting, where both war, and natural disasters have ravaged the land, causing a shortage in the necessities of living. The sun was no longer making an appearance, and the world had taken on a "survival of the fittest" mentality, ruled by motorcycle clubs, outlaws, and corruption. Women bartered sex for power, while men fought one another for respect. When a man chose a mate, they became "bonded," for life, and would each get a brand or tattoo on them identifying that they were taken. Women wanted to be bonded, as this was their protection from the outside world. Women deemed not worthy of being bonded with were used, and abused by men.


Defiance is told in three points of view. Tru, was born in to the Defiance Motorcycle Club, and her father was the enforcer, and second in command to the corrupt leader Lance. Tru was treated with respect, because of her father's position within the Motorcycle Club (MC), by everyone but her father, Hugh. He beat Tru's mother, and then as Tru got older, he started beating her. Nobody stood up to him, as he was a strong, powerful, and dangerous man who was both feared and well-respected within their community. Tru dated one of Lance's son's, Silas, and was expected to eventually become bonded with him. However, she had been in love with Casper, (Cas) since she was a young girl. Cas was the illegitimate son of Lance, and was treated horribly, as he was growing up, until he earned respect through his fighting skills. Cas was the ultimate alpha male, and he was extremely sexy! He had always had a thing for Tru, but believed that she was too good for him, and would bond with Silas. Cas & amp; Tru end up having one night of passion, and go there separate ways as Cas joins the Navy (which is expected of every Defiance man), and Tru runs away from her father after he beats her, and attempts to rape her. Tru ends up returning to the rival MC for protection, but refuses to bond with the leader of the club. He returns her to Defiance, and it is expected that in order to show respect for the other MC, Tru must be publicly raped, and then killed for embarrasing the rival MC's leader. Instead, Tru makes it known that she wants to bond with Cas, who is now the current enforcer, having taken the place of Hugh when he died. It is up to Cas whether he accepts her bond, or does what's expected of him in order to prevent a war between the two MC's. In the meantime, we are introduced to Mathias, and his sidekick Bishop (Bish), both highly skilled Military Men on the run, who have information for Cas, and both become loyal, protective, and close friends of Cas and Tru. We get a well-rounded perspective of the story as Tru, Cas, and Mathias tell their points of view in the story.


Cas and Tru have a hot and heavy relationship filled with sexual tension. It is obvious to the reader how they feel about one another, but they are both stubborn, and have both miscommunications and lack of communication at times. I enjoyed Tru's character! She was strong, brave, intelligent, courageous, and loyal. She was the perfect mate for Cas, and really stood up for him, and what she thought was right. I enjoyed getting to know some of the secondary characters, especially Mathias, (who was mute) and Bish. These two guys became a part of Tru and Cas' surrogate family. Defiance, deals with a lot of dark subject matter, and themes such as abuse, rape, murder, anarchy, corruption, and the post apocalypse. It also deals with love, passion, chemistry, loyalty, healing, standing up of those weaker than yourself, and making a change in the world you live in. If you are looking for a fast-paced, whirlwind of non-stop action, passion, adventure, and an alternate reality, Defiance, is a great read for A Bookish Escape!



My Rating:


I give Defiance by Stephanie Tyler 4 Action-Packed, Sexually Charged, Transformative, and Courageous Stars! Ms. Tyler drew me in to a frightening future, where chaos, and anarchy reigned supreme, sex was used for power, and only the strong survived! The erotic chemistry between the alpha male Casper (Cas), and the sexy MC's princess, Tru was explosive! You will feel their need and desire for one another, turn in to love and loyalty. Cas got Tru to stand with him in the war to take down the corrupt leader, Lance, and make living conditions better for both the men and women in the Defiance Motorcycle Club. Read Defiance for a fun, Post Apocalyptic New Adult read that has action, adventure, romance, and sex! You will definitely get lost in this story!


My Favorite Quotes:

"I'm the only fu**ing one who counts, Tru. Don't forget that. God, she liked that, liked how he held her, told her that. Made her feel owned and she didn't understand why she wanted that. Knew it was only with her." (eARC, pg. 162)
~Tru


"I'm not going to survive you. I've made it through war, the Chaos...but you've always been my goddamned kryptonite." (eARC, pg. 170)
~Cas


"The bottom line was, she loved him, with everything she had. It wasn't about being ashamed of needing protection. It was about loving him enough to accept that certain things would always be a compromise. (eARC, pg. 171)
~Tru


"Her shoulder still tingled where he'd traced the tattoo and she already considered herself branded. The tattoo was simply a technicality." (eARC, pg. 132)
~Tru


"I knew and I made her mine, Silas. Took her out of here, made love to her under the stars and made goddamned good and sure to ruin her for anyone else. Tru's mine. Always was. And trust me, she didn't fight me at all." (eARC, pg. 186)
~Cas


"Took my world from black and white to full-on color, babe. You were always the goddamned sunshine." (eARC, pg. 236)
~Cas


To Read More Book Reviews, Visit A Bookish Escape at Http://www.abookishescape.com

[BookWormAli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, Even when I wasn't quite sure what was going on.

This book is about a relationship between an MC former princess and a tope enforcer who worked his way up. Their relationship is tested by a lot but mostly by Tru herself. I'm not going to lie, there were times I wasn't sure what the heck was going on, but I was so absorbed in figuring it out I didn't care. It intrigued me...I wanted to know the depths of Caspar, and I wanted Tru to buck up

Mathias and Bishop were great characters and I enjoyed seeing their relationship bloom as well as the backstory of Chaos storm and the people who foraged a new world from the wreckage. I want to see what happens to the MC and where they go after this newest war.

I loved that Ms. Tyler combined a MC with a apocalyptic world, because to be honest it makes sense especially the way she writes the story. Who better to survive? I kept picturing mad max...With better hygiene.

Stephanie Tyler writes this book like an Impressionist painter paints...tiny blobs of information that slowly but surely forma whole picture.

[Jenee -Jenee's Book Blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!!!! This book was amazing! This is the first book I have ever read by Stephanie Tyler and let me just say, I am now a fan! Bad boy biker’s have always been one of my dark fantasies, so when I saw the blurb for Defiance I HAD TO READ IT. Luckily, Stephanie gave me an ARC for an honest review. I have read numerous other series of Motorcycle Club romance books but this book was completely different. There was natural disasters, motorcycle club wars, a scared runaway heroine, a hot hero, dominant men, fighting, HUGE secrets, caty women fighting over men, murder, betrayal and a love that shone through the darkness of it all.

It’s present day, after Chaos occurred. “Chaos” is the day everything changed in the world. Years ago a series of natural disasters occurred at the same time causing a loss of power, communication and leaving the world in darkness, only allowing the sun to shine for several hours every couple of months. The original leaders of the MC Defiance began preparing for such an occurrence back in the 1950’s by patenting a sort of pipe that was placed in the ground and built housing and tunnels into it, almost like an underground safe shelter, but more intricate. It’s a huge tunnel housing system under their houses above ground. So when “Chaos” occurred they were able to not only get underground but also had more than enough supplies inside for years. They lived in a gated community protected by guards, or members of the enforcer team of Defiance. They did what they had to do to protect the MC family, this included illegal activity and murder. They had to constantly protect their territory against not only other MC gangs but stragglers roaming through the darkness. The government was slowly rebuilding things, but there was really no form of justice other than taking care of things yourself. They did have local police but they tended to leave the Defiance gang along as long as the respected the authority of the local sheriff. Honestly, life for the MC gangs wasn’t all that different after “Chaos” than it was before. They still lived by their own rules and laws.

The world moved at a slow grind, but people’s basic needs were always the same: food, drugs, sex. Defiance simply admitted to it long before the chaos. The MC had survived, and survived well these past few years.
Caspar had survived as well, was so close to accomplishing his own private goals. He’d lived through twelve years of goddamned hell to get to this place, and no one was getting in his way. Not even Tru.~Caspar

So now that you understand the world around the characters, lets get to the good stuff. Casper is the bastard son of Lance, the MC President. He was treated as such when he was a child thrown into a world he wasn’t used to at a very young age when his mother died. Lance allows him to live in Defiance, but he doesn’t get special treatment like his “true” sons, Silas and Roan. He is tormented and picked on until the point he starts to grow into and adult body and learns to fight. He joins the service and becomes even more deadly later on. Casper and Silas become best friends from an early age and are always together growing up. Silas is a spoiled playboy who would have rather taken a football scholarship to college and then eventually the NFL than taken over as President of Defiance one day. Silas dated Tru all throughout high school and it was promised since birth that Silas and Tru would bond one day. Caspar always loved Tru from afar but being a bastard son, never thought she would consider him good enough to bond with. Caspar was known for liking public sex because he didn't have to worry about anything after he initial act, no intimacy. After a particular fight, when he was 18 and Tru was 16, Tru watched the club slut Fiona pleasure him on her knees and let me just say wow. I swear you would have thought it was Tru on her knees from the intense stair down between Tru and Caspar.

She wanted to be the one on her knees in front of him, and that thought rocked the hell out of her, because she’d never wanted to be on her knees for any man.
His eyes closed for the briefest second and his expression was almost pained. And then his icy blue eyes opened and his gaze locked on her and wouldn’t let go.

Caspar raised his brows and glanced down and then back at her, a question in his eyes.
He was inviting her to come between his legs. A bold and completely insolent move that could get him killed.
And he didn’t seem to care.

Full review to come soon on my blog!

link: Jenees Book Blog

[Jax Garren]

I have no idea what to rate this book. It's a fast-paced read in a fascinating if utterly crazy world. The post-apocalyptic + motorcycle club (MC) setting is (intentionally) harsh. During most of the page count I enjoyed that grit--Tyler commits to it fully, and I appreciated that--but there were a few issues I had a hard time with. This book should have like 15 trigger warnings. :)

The setting makes a world entirely populated by alphaholes reasonable; whether or not we're intended to like a male character is a function of his degree of, not lack of, misogyny. My problem was not so much with the men--I liked the hero, despite his overbearing nature--but with the women. How do you function as a whole being in this setting? You can't. Asserting independence comes in irregular fits and starts which, while realistic, feel fated to fail in their lack of focus. And each struggle needs a supportive man to be successful. Creating a feminist work in a male-centric setting is extremely difficult. Tyler does a good job, I think, but it's hard (for me) to empathize with female characters inured in the mindset. "Let's get men to not beat on their wives with impunity" is a worthy goal, but when that's the milemarker for feminist success...you know you're living in a bad place. The fact that Tyler created men I could root for despite this is a testament to her talent.

My main struggle with the book comes from a personal place. I'm a foster parent, and so issues with loyalty, love, blood and family are near and dear to me. The book starts when the heroine comes back to the MC she was raised in instead of staying out in the wider world she'd escaped to. There is an explanation for why she returns, and it's a reasonable one, but it still means she returns to the devil she knows for protection. It also sets up a trust issue between the H/H as he's afraid she'll run again. Which makes sense on his part--he doesn't want to commit to her if she's going to leave--but it makes her the bad guy should she decide to get out of a bad place, as he won't even consider leaving. As a foster parent, I know variations on this theme are startlingly common in real life. Love and loyalty screw with people, making them live in bad situations because they choose these ideals over their own well-being. Me? I'd rather see someone fight to get out and stay out. I believe loyalty should be earned and never granted based on the people and groups you were born into. Back when I taught high school and directed a punk Romeo and Juliet, "Love does not conquer all" was our slogan, and I believe it's a far truer statement than the original.

It might've changed my opinion if we'd seen more of the world outside the motorcycle club. Maybe the post-apocalyptic outside world is as crap as inside the MC. Characters stated as much, but we didn't see enough of it for me to trust they weren't justifying their own norms. If I'd seen without a doubt that the world outside the MC was not simply dangerous (the world INSIDE the MC was dangerous) but had the same or comparable inequities, I would've been more at peace with her decision. I imagine I have a bigger issue with this than most people would as it hit very close to home for me. I want my daughters to have more examples of protagonists saying, "Eff this; I can do better," for them to point to and emulate, so I probably go overboard in this direction.

Lest I sound too much of a downer, I did like the ending. I like the hero and the gang he's gathered around him--particularly Mathias, a mute, AWOL military guy. The fighting scenes were well done. Overall this is a great book with visceral writing and a lot to think about. But if violence against women is a trigger for you (violence in general, really), this depicts or alludes to about every kind you can imagine. "Strong female" means something different here than it does in most settings--again, in this world it would be unreasonable for a woman to be a leader--and that's hard for me. (I can't even read D/s books for this reason, so I'm pretty far off the norm here.) But if Defiance looks interesting to you, I recommend giving it a try. The writing is visceral and raw and the story isn't like anything else I've read. Most of my problems come from personal triggers, and Stephanie Tyler's capable writing means they hit home hard! I say bravo to her for being brave enough and talented enough to make me squirm and think.

[Margreet Asselbergs · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://ripeforreader.blogspot.ca/2013...


When Tru Tennyson left the Defiance compound three years ago, she was escaping an almost pre-ordained future of submission to violence and abuse. Tru could no longer quietly condone and suffer the treatment women received in the rough male-dominated culture of motor cycle clubs, so she did the only thing she could at that time, and ran leaving her abusive father, her friends and the one guy she would protect at all cost behind.

Her taste of freedom was short lived, because only a few years later, Chaos happened. A build up of natural disasters that annihilated millions and completely changed the natural and structural order of things. Living in a state of almost lawlessness, where everyone is fending for themselves and fighting to survive, groups, gangs and motorcycle clubs like Defiance, stand strongest.

Tru is left with no choice but to return to the Defiance compound, and face whatever consequences are waiting for her. She hopes Caspar will be there, he is the only one she will trust. Caspar is the bastard son of Lance, the club president, but he has always had her back. He is the only person who knows what happened to her and who can keep her safe.

But the club is not happy with Tru's return, it could cause war between Defiance and another MCC. They threaten to trade her to the other club in return for peace, but she will not cooperate and publicly puts herself at Caspar's mercy, which creates an uproar.

It is now up to Caspar to decide whether he is willing to bond with Tru and face the extensive repercussions of that move, or whether he should turn his back on her, just like she did him, three years ago. But Caspar has an agenda of his own that no one is privy to, and perhaps the return of Tru to Defiance can be made to work for him..........in more than one way.

*******

I have to admit, I was a little hesitant at first to start this book. I had read good things about it, it dealt with a motorcycle club.......it had to be good, right?? But then there was the futuristic aspect that held me back, I've always been more of a 'here and now' kind of person. I don't do historic novels either. But obviously I eventually gave in, and boy am I glad I did!!! I'm gonna explain why......

I can see why Ms. Tyler placed this story in an age, where circumstances are so barren, so basic and almost animalistic from a cultural standpoint. It perfectly framed the struggle to maintain some morality, in a situation where there aren't really any laws, where the stronger ones rule. And where women sometimes have to find their strengths in other ways when measuring themselves against the men.

Caspar is a tough character, not perfect, but morally sound and he is powerful because that moral conviction carries and it shows a leader.
Tru was conditioned to stand up for and trust only herself, but in this new world, she has to learn to trust in and rely on other people's strengths as well in order to survive.

The plot line is slow to become clear, but it will, you just have to be patient. Things will seem confusing at first, in part because of the unfamiliarity of the environment, and then because of the gruff and often overly coarse interactions between the characters. Remember this is a different world, where white literally dog eats dog, and nothing gets wasted, not even words. So don't expect flowery dialogue, because you won't find it here, it's useless in the post-Chaos world, and one of the things I love about the book and Stephanie Tyler........it (and she) stays very true to the integrity of the story, which is, let's face it, pretty darn crude!

A very well-written, dark, but hopeful, story that was at times very violent, and then very sexual, but you will find very little softness in these pages. And truthfully, it doesn't belong there, which is why the use of the 'post-apocalyptic' framework the story is placed in, is so important here. It's a story of clawing out of the rubble, of rebuilding something that once was good, in hopes of finding that sweet spot again. It's about community, family, support systems and a simple thing like connections that are needed to be able to survive.

A sensational gritty, raw, carnal tale of love and survival!!