Jasper

Caged Hearts #1

by Heather West

Jasper Duboix only knows how to talk with his hands
The arrogant bad boy who has taken the MMA world by storm, Jasper gets what he wants no matter what. But the visceral heat, the pain and pleasure of fighting in the ring has all paled in comparison to the feisty Kait, and Jasper just might be in deep. And with the biggest tournament of his career coming up, he might have to make a painful decision…

Kaitlyn Stewart needs more than a searing touch
The last thing Kait expected after getting mugged was to fall in love with her savior – a raw-knuckled, taut-muscled man with a penchant for blazing caresses at night. Problem is, she’s pretty sure she now feels much more for him than he does for her, and she’s not sure if her heart can take it…

The heart wants what it wants, but sometimes the mind is good at getting in the way. Jasper’s career is on the line, but something keeps bringing him back to her. And Kait’s wild heart might just be okay with that…

THIS BOOK IS A STANDALONE NOVEL, WHICH FEATURES STEAMY SCENES, NO CHEATING OR CLIFFHANGERS, AND A HEA ENDING.

Genres: Romance, Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, Sports Romance, Fighters, Interracial Romance, Contemporary Romance

331 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 23, 2015

About the author

Librarian Note: Romance author Heather West's books appear to have been removed from most online outlets, though some are still available on Google Play. Her Facebook page appears to be inactive as well.

Reviews

[Nikki · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book landed on my Kindle for two reasons--

A) I attempt to read one new-to-me author per week

And

B) I like to work my Kindle Unlimited subscription like a dockside hooker on payday.

Sadly, Heather West will not be making it into the regular rotation.

I honestly wasn't aware that women as foolishly gullible as Kait actually existed. She was so obsessed with the hero that her behavior frequently breached the border into stalking, to say nothing of the fact that her sense of self-preservation is shit--and this was after nearly being sexually assaulted. Her pining after a man who NO LESS THAN FIVE TIMES pulled the old fuck-and-buck was tiresome and her refusal to listen to the sound advice of her girl grated hard on my nerves. Amazingly, she still managed to walk upright without the benefit of a backbone.

Add to that some pretty glaring errors (how does a man whose knee can "barely support his weight" do squats and skip rope?), a 371-page book divided into ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEEN CHAPTERS and a hero with no backstory, personality or real appeal behind his questionable bedroom abilities and you get... Well, this.

There was a tiny bit of mystery revealed towards the end of the book that was quite clever, though it in no way made up for the 300+ pages of mediocrity before it.

I am no stranger to the DNF. It doesn't hurt my feelings or lead me with any uncomfortable feelings of failure. While I did muddle my way through this one in its entirety, I can honestly say it was more about my inability to look away than any real desire to finish--if you catch my drift.

[Ashleyjo · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Pretty girl like you shouldn't be walking around on her own after dark."

"This isn't the seventies, Rob."

Gawdlawd, you know a character is gonna be dumb as tree bark when she says some shit like that at 1%....~ and then, of course, gets attacked moments later by three bad guys who want to rape her.



These little tidbits of cut and paste Barbie certainly don't help me warm to her...

•designer trench coat
• tan via a bottle
• long blonde hair
• black stiletto shoes
• she tottered over to the elevator, pressed a button with her manicured finger
• "please just let me go" "don't hurt me" she says to the thugs with knives.
• her car: beige Fiat 500
• her drink: Cosmo (of course)
• her past three boyfriends played cricket

So an MMA fighter saves the day. No rape. Instead this turns into a one night stand with the savior, who is long gone in the am.



This chick Googles him, stalks his Twitter posts, Googles him again... and decides he is too reckless fighting after being injured while saving her. *eyeroll* Off she goes to the fight to stalk reprimand him (not about him leaving her high and dry... No, no....NO!) JUST about how careless he is being with his health. Omg~



She #s and @'s him on Twitter "seconds before he walks out to fight in the ring."



This dude is a star MMA fighter, with a "million followers" by the way, and he is seconds from walking into the ring. Yet, readers are supposed to buy that he is a) CHECKING his Twitter feed SECONDS BEFORE A FIGHT b) sees her random @ to him amongst his millions of fans c) would even want to respond since he left her without even a 'thanks for the fuck?' Really? Come the fuck on!

They get it on, or so I'm told. He tells her that she is and will always be "back burner" to his fighting. Well, that's fing swoon worthy shit there!!! So, of course, she's back to being *cough* concerned for his health and how much he trains and fights vs resting. Funny how this concern is absent when we are told about marathon sex, but suddenly reappears each time he leaves her in the dust for his fighting career.

Anyhow....

Clearly, the characters are horrible. Clearly, the plot is lacking & nFingBelievable. Can you take a wild guess if the writing is even good?!!




If you guessed it sucks eggs, then you'd be right. Qualities I hate:

• I'm merely told the characters have sex. Not shown, told! Like literally... We had sex three times and it was amazing. Okay, thanks for sharing~

• Leading convos and and the natural shot that would come before scenes are just glossed over and half-ass told in past tense. For example, she gets to his dressing room, tells him off and gives him an ultimatum, he says "wait" and "lock the door" ... Bam we are at the morning after and she is half-ass recounting what happened:

"Kait told him how angry she was at him and his he needed to take better care of himself before they gave in to the sexual tension brewing between them. Jasper made love to her on the sofa in his dressing room. Then, still hungry for more, he went home with her."

• The same (almost manic) thoughts just keep getting repeated like a bad rinse cycle.

• Grammar and technically writing isn't horrible in that it's unintelligible, but it's far from grammatically correct.

• Stiflingly slow pace that's littered with inner rambling and very little dialogue and action.

• "Gently sucked her clitoris." Are you serious with this shit? Ehhhhhh.

• What little dialogue exists sounds stiff, trite, and like dumb and dumber trying to have a convo:

"So I like movies? I'm not always training you know?"

"So when you're not training you're watching movies."

"Pretty much. I'm something of a movie geek."

"Good to know."

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"What do you do when you're not working?"

I would highly recommend downloading a sample before purchase. The author's style, pacing, storyline, and character personas just aren't too my taste. DNF @16%

[CeCe · Rating 2 out of 5]

My biggest problem with this book is that the heroine knows the guy for one night and suddenly she becomes so attached to him...desperate. She does not get the hint when he tells her that he is not looking for a relationship.

"You're a booty call..." Kait's friends would tell her about her relationship with Jasper, but she would not get it!!!

"You're thinking that I'm a desperate fool chasing after you yet again?" (loc 2736) I was yelling at the Kindle "YES HE DOES!!!"

"I am done with you treating me like I don't matter to you. You come round here, and we have amazing sex, and then you leave. Do you have any idea how that makes me feel, Jasper? I don't feel like I'm loved by some amazing guy; I feel used." (loc 2583)
It would be sex and then Jasper would say he has to go. She would always say that she was going to give him one more chance and that was going to be it. She would say that she would not allow him to just have sex with her and then have him just leave, but she did. He always acted like he did not care.

"So we are really, truly, actually together?" (loc 2861) The heroine must have asked the hero this a million times. I think he just said yes at this point to get her off his back.

Jasper could be a jerk. This is what he said after the tenth time she asked him if they were in a relationship. Kait would not a get clue. I am not sure why she cared for him so much. He saved her, had sex with her, and went home. From one night she fell hard from him?!?!?! She was a grown woman and not in high school!!! She should have not acted like such a fool.
"'You came her to ask me if I'm your boyfriend? What are we ten?' Jasper was still shaking his head as he picked up his weight back up and continued to work out." (loc 998)

The last 20% was interesting. If only the entire book was written in that style and less desperation from the heroine. I prefer when the hero chases the heroine verses the other way around.

[Bree · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing. If you would have asked me up until 80% into the book if I would have given it 3 stars I would have said "heck no!" Honestly it wouldn't have deserved that many stars at all. 80% of the book hurt me to read. It was so uncomfortable for me to hear a woman so in knots over a man after 2 seconds of knowing each other. The worst though was that he didn't even appreciate her or deserve her. She was basically getting walked on blinded by some Prince Charming act. This can't be good for females to read something so dependent and sad. The last 20% at least had some substance to it. If the whole book would have been like that it would have been 100% better. I won't be reading this book again that's for sure.

[Lori wyatt · Rating 1 out of 5]

BORING

The heroine of this story makes me want to VOMIT!! She is so weak, clingy, and pathetic! The man is NOT the alpha male you would expect of an MMA fighter...this was an extremely disappointing read and I'm shortlisted my time on it-don't bother with it!!

[Cynthia Strike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Left wanting more

Lacking character development and sense of connection with characters and between characters. Storyline was something that could have been interesting if more depth added.

[Michelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF the heroine ruined the book for me and yes some spoilers ahead. The h sleeps with the H after he saves her. she says they make love. They have a special connection. Starts freaking out because he isn't calling her. She knows he felt what she felt. I will say I love obsessive stalker heroes but I hate a desperate heroine. She was stalker desperate. They talked for a few minutes and had great sex. That was it. A great orgasm does not mean it's time to start picking out the guest list for the wedding because that's where she was headed. Not for me!

[Jeng74 · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF!!!
Horribly juvenile. I could not stand the h

[Samara]

75% I'm done...

[Alyssa Conway · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s very hard to believe that the same person wrote “Mason” and “Jasper.” The difference in the writing is night and day. I enjoyed “Mason” more as the storyline and the writing were better.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jasper & Kait have a really great story that is, unfortunately, bogged down. He saves her from muggers, and they begin to form a relationship. He's hot & cold - and at first, this is an intriguing storyline. We start out w/ Kait's 3rd person POV, and eventually we get Jasper's & the chapters switch back & forth. We learn why he's hot & cold - there's a baddie manipulating him. Again, intriguing storyline.

What makes this a slightly painful read (and not in the good way) is that the storyline goes from intriguing to repetitive. And this is a loooong story (118 chapters, I think). The relationship portion is finally resolved to a point, and then there is another intriguing storyline about Jasper's career & the manipulative baddie - and it goes from intriguing to repetitive and frustrating as well! :(

I feel like w/ some clean up this would have been a 5+ star read, because I DID really enjoy the story & where it went! : )

[Allie York · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given Jasper to read for an honest review.
Kait is a hard worker, gunning for a promotion, and working late nights to get the attention of her boss. Upon leaving after a particularly late night she's attacked by a group of men, but saved by a tall, built, and mysterious stranger. Jasper is injured in the process and Kait insists on taking him home to patch him up. The pull between them is instant. Kait instantly falls head over heels for her knight in shining armor, but Jasper, while taken by Kait, has a very serious cage fighting career that always comes first.
I loved the sexual chemistry between Jasper and Kait. The story line and conflict kept me completely enthralled, but I could not connect with Kait. The writing made me feel her despair and indecisiveness, but I really couldn't get in her corner for most of the book. She finally redeemed herself in the last quarter of the book, in my eyes at least, and I was left completely satisfied with the ending.

[Kendra Wynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay so the characters really annoyed me in the first half of this book! the girl was just such a baby! she meets someone sleeps with him the same night and is completely obsessed! Jasper was a huge jerk all he really wanted was someone to have sex with and then that was it for the most part! but when a girl is willing to be used I guess it happens! I considered not even finishing because I just couldn't stand the way they were acting but I really wanted to know how things ended! good thing I did because I enjoyed the second half of this book way more! once they actually got together and acted like a couple it went great from there! I really would like to read more from this author but it would be nice if not all of her characters Are as crazy and mean as these two were. I'm not sure if I would get through another story like that.

[Cassie Hess-dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kait is attacked in a parking garage & Jasper comes to her rescue. The chemistry between the two is sizzling. Jasper is an MMA fighter and can't be distracted by a woman, but with Kait he can't seem to stay away. Can the two figure out how to have a relationship and still stay focused on their careers? Or is it best to cut their losses before either one gets hurt?
So although I struggled with how Kait could be such a wimp when it came to Jasper and allow him to treat her so poorly, I can totally understand her thinking. She was hooked; hot guy and fabulous sex, great combination. I'm glad that the two pushed through their issues and were able to figure things out...the twist near the end...thought that it was - perfect way to end the book!!

[Karen Bullock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Deeply disappointing. The blog sounded really good and I am just now starting to read different authors who write MMA & cage fighting books but this for me was just wrong. Jasper was a cool character and stated several times from the beginning that fighting is his life. Kaitelyn on the other hand turns out to be such a whiner that after a few weekends of sex in bed all day, she is of the belief that Jasper should put her first & continues to try and push a relationship to happen and then gets upset because he won't give her the time of day or shows no interest in being "boyfriend/girlfriend" material. When you have to force yourself to keep reading, just to end the misery, it's not worth it.
So I'm off to see what else this author writes.

[Jessica Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A spiral of romance, careers and deceit. And realizing that careers are not everything if that one person doesn't stand by you no matter what you go through.
Jasper has it all the fame, the fans and a high paying career as a fighter. All he is missing is the girl.
That girl is Kait. She is everything and more all rolled into a cute dainty package. If Jasper could just pull his head outta his you know what. She loves him for him and nothing more. Well maybe a little since he is good in bed and saved her life. But something is off about his agent. And she will not stop until she finds out what he is hiding and to save Jasper from himself and his agent....

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love giving new authors a try but unfortunately this time the results were very disappointing.

The story progresses too quickly and you don't really get any backstory on the characters. The interaction with other characters is sparse and the characters literally go from barely seeing each other to saying I love you on the phone but you never saw when they came to the point of saying it.

Maybe I'll give the next book a shot and a chance for redemption but it's definitely not on the top of my to read list.

[Shari · Rating 3 out of 5]

These two main characters are both idiots. I mean, really?! People were playing them, but they never saw it when it was pretty obvious. Most people would not buy the crap that they do. It drove me nuts how gullible they were while I was reading this. Even with their too trusting selves, the story was an okay read. The hero didn't treat the heroine very well either, had a complete turn around and loved her, which was a little too quick for me.

[Leanne Bryson · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was a lot of potential with this story. A person you should be able to trust, betrays that trust for monetary gain. Could be a good story, right? Unfortunately, the repetitive, hot and cold behavior of Jasper, and the door mat behavior of Kait, became too much. The book was too long, too repetitive, too much....... Would I give the author another chance? Maybe. Gifted an ARC for an honest review.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really having an issue with Kait...can we say door mat! Jasper is concentrating on his career as a MMA fighter when he rescues Kait from attackers. There is attraction on both sides, but he keeps pushing her away. She gets mad, then takes him in for a booty call. Rinse & repeat for the first half of the book. What makes the book is the second half...they finally work through their issues and become a couple.

[Lofty · Rating 3 out of 5]

3
Jasper is leaving the gym when he spots 3 men up to no good he rescues Kaitlyn from been raped by them after leaving work late. He's hurt & won't go to the hospital so she fetches him back to her apartment things get so steamy but he's gone in the morning.
The tug of war between them to be together is so hard. He's from foster homes & not used to someone caring.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book.
Tug of war love.

[Gmomy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thankfully this book was a free book included with another. I could not stand the immaturity of both the H/h through the majority of the book. The ending turned things around a bit but I still could only think of such a poor beginning. Even though it was free I will never be able to get that time back.

[Ladyt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not your typical story

When I downloaded this story I really didn't think I would like it. Sometimes she really made me mad for being a doormat, but she did it because she saw something in him that he didn't see in himself. I love the ending it is a must read.

[Karen Lane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh Jasper..

I love a good MMA story. The sexy hunks that can mix it up in the bed as much as they can in a cage... Nothing sexier for me..
A great strong h most of the time also.. I liked her.

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointed

I was really looking forward to this book but I'm really disappointed I only could read up to 60%.
Caitlyn was so needy from the start to the point it was sicken.
This could of been a great story

[Lburt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly could not stand Kait. I really wanted to punch her in the face. She is so whiney and needy, and then she worries about being whiney and needy. The books real saving grace is the plot twist in the last quarter or so of the book. Loved that.

[Zeinab Dh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this in exchange of an honest review, the book was ok Jasper was not what I had in mind he would be and neither his female character Kait as well I was surprised a lot when it came to these two characters I felt a little lost with them and all in all it was a good book to read

[Candice Barrier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book! It kept your attention and was very energetic. When Kait finally steps up for Jasper and everyone finally sees the truth behind it all. Definitely a book I reccommend for anyone into romance novels. Hot and intense.

[Yasmine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Got to Chapter 12 and even that was a stretch. The main character Kait was unbelievably weak and desperate I could not handle. Constantly crying for little things it was crazy. No words, this was a wreck.

[Lorelei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

I really enjoyed this book. had lots of twists to keep you interested, good storyline, and characters. looking forward to more