I get strippers get a bad rap and that a lot of people see beauty as an empty vase, but it really perturbs me when an author/character takes a subject and twists it in a knot to try and garner empathy, sympathy where none is needed. I'm not going to feel sorry for her because she's soooo beautiful, sorry just not happening.
This chick is working as a stripper, you know that job where Mf'ers come in and pay to see how 'beautiful' naked women look shaking their asses, and has the gumption to complain about being objectified & judged for being so f'ing beautiful. Really? No, really?!?!? Nothing wrong with earning a living as a stripper, but don't try and make me empathize with being objectified as beautiful when you know damn well that men ain't going to look at your naked ass in a strip club and try to discover what your favorite food, color, and school subject might be, okay!
Female Mc: "Some people complain about being overweight or having acne; I hate being beautiful. I know it sounds stupid. I mean why would anyone complain about being attractive, right? Here's why: Men see me as an object and women see me as competition. No one is ever willing to give me a chance. They all judge me but what's outside, never taking a second to find out even the smallest detail about who I am."
Again, don't try to make me empathize with her not wanting to be beautiful; make me empathize that she has had the misfortune of only meeting tools that see her as beautiful vase, but don't twist shit like this chick would say to give her an extra helping of ugly if given the choice between being ugly or beautiful!
Fact is that all people are judged outwardly, whether that's an overweight woman judged as desperate, a nerdy girl judged as prudishly naive, or a beautiful woman viewed as shallow.
Here's a clue: Judgment, or rather lack thereof, is about the eyes that are looking, not what they're looking at!
Then the female MC gives us this little gem: "I get up there (strip stage) to earn enough money so I can change my life in order to never be objectified again."
^ Yeah, tell that to the secretaries that have their asses five fingered by their bosses, the nurses that get cornered by doctors with a God complex, and the waitresses that get called "sugar" by a bunch of suits that assume her IQ is akin to the poundage of a bag of Domino. Strippers don't have a monopoly on objectification lol.
The female MC leaves a bad taste in my mouth from jump. I continued onward because I think no way this shit can get any worse.
Ah, hell yeah it can and it does. We meet the male MC, Kenton.
All the female MC's beauty ramblings are to set up the scene for the biggest jackass male character that ever thought about being typed out.
Upon entry, this guy is grade A duchebag. He's judgmental, hypocritical, crass, & narcissistic. He constantly sticks his foot in his mouth all while he wants to stick his dic* in her mouth. He's insulting & rude. He goes from looking at this chick like dirt on the bottom of his shoe to cooing "baby" at her. He goes from gently holding and comforting her one minute to saying that if her "reward" (aka sex) wasn't worth it that he wouldn't put up with her bullshit (aka her getting pissed when he sticks his foot in his mouth.)
Like the female MC, he leaves a sour taste in my mouth out of the gate that just never fully went away:(
Just because a dude opens car doors for a woman, coos "baby," and is protective doesn't negate the stupid shit that comes out of his mouth. So, by the time the author gets his mouth under control and places him in his nice suit of steel, it's just too late for me to really appreciate his good qualities:(
The romance here, especially given her initial 'I hate being beautiful, judged, and objectified' intro and his clearly judgmental behavior, made me laugh at the hypocrisy and absurdity of it all.
There are some little tidbits of info that scream "hey look at me" but then are never expounded upon once the reader looks... Wtf? Her bizarre reaction to being tickled is a perfect example.
The male MC's job is another example of questionable shit that doesn't make a lot of sense. He hunts people down, protects them... ?!? Idk? He works with cops on one hand and has in's with the mob on the other... He's okay with torture and killing who he deems deserves it without batting a damn eye... Wtf?
Wait! There is a Silver lining~
The author is very talented in several areas. No, I swear I'm not bipolar! I've tore her shitty characters to shreds, but there's a reason that I finished this book instead of throwing it in the kindle garbage.
~ Humor!
Despite awful characters and some f'd up schematics, there are actually some fairly funny moments within the story. The aunt and mama were cute every time they made appearances. The whole bed throwing scene was freaking hilarious, and when she kicked the jackass in the shin, hell I almost wanted to high-five her~almost! The dog scene was precious.
~ Pacing!
There aren't any lulls in this story. I didn't find myself skipping pages or grunting disgust at ramblings on the trivial crapolla. The author packed the story with something interesting toward the plot or the MC's history, and made sure that the mundane moments had a touch of humor, romance, action, angst, or something to piss me off.
~ Set up for standalone sequels!
F me running but the author managed to put a lot of secondary characters in this story & they were all interesting enough to pique my interest in what their stories might be. Justin and Kai, albeit limited exposure, were hotter than the male MC here any day of the week!
~ Thorough wrap up!
The author made sure that all the t's were crossed and i's were dotted in wrapping up Kenton and Autumn's romantic story.
Also, a tender moment 10 years later was particularly touching and, despite my dislike for her, I'm glad that Autumn was able to get closure the things that plagued her from her truly tragic past.
My bottom line:
I really, really got off on the wrong foot with the characters and it ruined what I would call a 3 1/2 star book based on merit, not character flaws. So, if you're a romantic with an easily forgiving heart, then you'll probably really like this book.