I’ve actually decided after reading ACE that Ms Byrd likes to torture not only her characters, but her readers too! Ace is a man that has an easy, unpretentious presence, and I liked him immediately when he was first introduced in book 1 – RUSH. A supportive friend, conscientious businessman, and a loyal and protective son, everything about him said “nice, stable guy”. So when a blast from the past walks into Rapture and Ace is catapulted back in time to a place and a girl he never forgot, it’s understandable the emotions run high, and their undeniable physical attraction has certainly not been diminished by time or distance. But secrets and deception have a way of coming back to haunt you, and while Rowan may start out with the best of intentions, her reasons for keeping a 14 year secret and her motives for reappearing in Ace’s life are questionable.
Here is where I explain my comment about the author’s tendency to torture her readers. In book 1 we needed to be open-minded enough to push past the reprehensible behaviour of Rush to discover the man beneath the sordid life and emotional pain, while in Ace’s story readers are asked to understand the reasoning behind Rowan’s decade plus deception and her selfish and self-serving actions. I for one could not. I disliked Rowan once the lies were revealed and my feelings for this unreasonable woman never changed. I found her reasons for the not seeking out Ace during the first 8 years, somewhat acceptable, but after this point in time, her continued excuse of being scared felt hollow and fake.
I love Ace as a character and Carmen was a sweetheart and totally believable in her role; Rowan however was a shallow character who I felt absolutely no empathy towards and found her willingness to use sex to get what she wanted, both deplorable and manipulative. Ace deserved better and I wish he had of kicked her to the curb. The storyline for ACE was heartfelt and his emotional struggle was well-documented throughout; so he definitely didn’t make his decisions lightly. A good story overall, I just disliked Rowan with a passion, so my 4 Stars are all for Ace and Carmen. I’m now addicted to the Men od Rapture and certainly excited to read Niko and Elle’s story next!