Chaos & the Geek

Grace Grayson Security #1

by Elizabeth Stevens

Amber
How do you politely refuse when the only guy to star in any of your dirty fantasies has just offered to put you up for the foreseeable future and your brother’s just accepted like you were in fact still thirteen and couldn’t make decisions for yourself? You don’t. And, you end up with a roommate who wears a very good elegant mask over the rough and tumble, bad boy core I remember far too well.

Only, it’s ten years later and I’m even nerdier than I used to be. It’s ten years later and I couldn’t look worse. It’s ten years later and I can’t keep one guy. It’s ten years later and my brother still teases me mercilessly in front of him. It’s ten years later and Kit somehow looks even better than the guy I spent my formative years crushing on.

So, there’s not only the issue that he’s my older brother’s best friend, but also a sex-god this virgin can barely talk to. But that certainly never stopped me from drooling over him and it wouldn’t stop me now. He’s so far out of my league, I wouldn’t even clean in his league.

Except, there might just be a smouldering heat in Kit’s eyes that suggests he’s not quite as out of my league as I thought. Just maybe, this geek is about to get a whole lot of chaos.

Kit
When I find out about my best mate’s little sister’s situation, the offer is out of my mouth before I can stop it; Hawk’s like a brother to me even if Amber’s never looked twice at me. I could never tell if she was scared of me or hated me. But the deal is done. She’s going to bring her bedraggled self upstairs to my penthouse and live with me for as long as she needs.

I see the pain she hides away, I see the lack of confidence despite how smart she is, how good. If there’s something I’ve learned, it’s that confidence makes all the difference. So, it becomes my mission to help Amber find her confidence. But I find more than confidence in her and suddenly I’m seeing my best mate’s little sister completely differently.

I’ve never known what to say to her. She’s always been good and studious and sweet. She’s always been so far out of my league I wouldn’t even carry bags in that league. Her face is a mask that tells me nothing in between the sparse words that come out of her mouth.

Except, there might be something in the way she smiles at me that gives me hope I’m not as far out of her league as I thought. It might just be time that this chaos gets a little geek.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Military Fiction, New Adult, Amazon, Adult

227 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 3, 2020

About the author

Writer. Reader. Perpetual student. Nerd.

I started out writing fantasy. But, I like to write anything, honestly. These days, I mainly stick to YA and there's always at least a sprinkling of romance, if not a 'whoops, I dropped the whole packet in'. Almost all my books are set in my home state of South Australia, either in real or fictional places - gotta write what you know - with Netherfield being the only current exception.

Like most writers, I love to read. Although, time for reading at the moment is hard to come by. When I'm not too busy writing, I'm usually reading a number of authors. Some of my favourites are Rick Riordan, Jane Austen, Kate Forsyth, Cecilia Dart-Thornton, Kasie West, John Flanagan, Terry Pratchett, Isobelle Carmody, Christina Benjamin, Emily Rodda, and many more.

I'm an avid fan of Marvel, DC, Doctor Who, Supernatural, Red Dwarf, IT Crowd, and pretty much anything similar. I've recently discovered Richard Ayoade's Travel Man and it's brilliant. I love watching soccer (go Gunners) and thoroughly look forward to seeing Eurovision every year. Celebrity crushes include Anna Kendrick and Chris Evans, because they are wonderful.

I live in Adelaide with my husband and a menagerie of animals – a cat reliving her (sixth) youth, a cowardly Beagle-Cavalier who thinks he’s smaller than he is, one meeping guinea pig who thinks any plastic bag has his greens in, two chickens who are terrified of free-ranging, and a turtle with a penchant for sticking her head up her filter pipe.

I have a Master of Arts (Writing) from Swinburne University of Technology. I also have a Master of Arts (Editing and Publishing) at University of Southern Queensland and, am now working towards my PhD. I also hope to one day undertake a PhD in Creative Writing - perpetual student, am I.

I also organise the Sleeping Dragon Emerging Fantasy Writers’ Collective writing group. The group self-published their anthology Tales from the Sleeping Dragon in 2012.

You can also find me on:
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NB: I'm usually happy to discuss review copies of my books. A track record of reviewing is preferable, but not completely necessary.

Reviews

[Mimia The Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I really liked this book. I found Amber very real (as in I know who she is and I’ve spoken to her before) and the relationship between the 4 guys was very funny. I also really like the name Christopher and the short name Kit so this may be why I liked this book more than Caden. I’m not sure. I also liked that they both agreed that their relationship shouldn’t be a secret for long as I always find it very not-lovely when people do (to put it very mildly).j

Beware that this book has some sex scenes. You could skip them and still enjoy the story (I know I did)

I received an ARC from the author

[L · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

This book wasn’t it for me. I stopped 32% in and I still could not shake the feeling of boredom. I didn’t like the writing style. It didn’t engage me into the story as a reader and that’s a huge minus point. The characters are bland like food without seasoning. I couldn’t connect with them. I had to stop. I’m sorry.

[Kate Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a wonderful surprise. This is the first book I’ve read by Elizabeth Stevens, but I’ve always been a fan of stories with geeky characters. I was one of the weird ones growing up, and their stories often resonate with me. And since I ended up with a pretty hot guy (who’s still not bad after almost fifty years) I know these romances are definitely possible, but this one had an absolutely wonderful cast of characters and some of the best, snappiest dialogue I’ve read in a long time. I also liked the fact that Amber--the geek of the title--was not the least bit cowed by all the men of the Grace-Grayson security team. It was obvious that while she'd adored her older brother, she probably hadn't hesitated to give him some grief while growing up.

She obviously hasn't lost her touch. Amber is smart, she’s working on her graduate degree, has an okay boyfriend and rooms with her best friend. At least until she gets home from an all-nighter studying and walks in on her best friend and Amber’s boyfriend doing the deed. Obviously, she needs a new roommate. Now. The boyfriend? He’s history.

But first she has to get out of there and go...somewhere. Somewhere far away, but she ends up at a luxury hotel about a block away where she runs into her older brother’s business partner, a man Amber has been crushing on since she was Patrick’s baby sister, and Kit a much older teen. Kit, known as Chaos and her brother Patrick, aka Hawk, however, both think she absolutely hates Kit, which is why when he offers her a place to stay with him, her brother is all over the idea. Kit’s safe. He and Amber can’t stand each other, right?

Watching these two figuring out how they really feel about one another while hiding it from Amber’s brother and the rest of the guys on their security team was absolute fun from the first page to the last. I don’t want to give any of it away, but I can guarantee a lot of smiles, some really deep, emotional moments, and a romance that is absolutely perfect.

Kudos to Ms. Stevens for pulling off a top notch job on a story that has a lot of familiar tropes, but is fresh and lively and pure entertainment from start to finish. I really enjoyed this one, and absolutely love finding “new to me” authors!

One note I might add--there were a lot of typos, but the reason I didn't drop any stars off my review is that the author's storytelling is so far superior to so many of the books that I read that I wasn't the least bit bothered by the errors. Certainly not enough to lower my rating.

[Viv “BookVixen” Gutierrez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mehhhh. Fizzled out.

First time reading this author. Don’t think I’ll be reading any more of her books. This story was just ok. It was written pretty well, there weren’t any atrocious grammar errors and the story flow was smooth, but it did drag on unnecessarily in parts and there was a tad too much push n pull. The hero was very Beta, while also being a giant, sliming man who re. I thought was discordant with him having been special ops—those guys are alpha AF. Instead the hero was hesitant and what’s the opposite of dominant? Whatever that word is, that’s what he was.

And mother-trucking F$&?k!!! Condom use. NOT SEXY. not romantic. It’s an ugly latex barrier of separation. It implies a lack of trust and commitment. It says that the heroine isn’t special, there’s nothing different about her than any other meaningless skunk he’s stuck his appendage into. It’s grossssss and I’m so sick of it in romance. This is a huge pet peeve of mine, I know and some ppl won’t be turned off by it, but this scene, come on! ““Condom,” I told her, pressed a kiss to her lips, then ran to my room. When I got back, I didn’t go back around into the kitchen. I reached for Amber’s arm and pulled her across the bench to me. She yelped and laughed as I wrapped her body around me again with one arm while I ripped the condom open with my teeth.”

Just motherflucking no!

The sex scenes were ruined for me, and the hero was limpwristed and too beta, so I’m probably not going to read anything more by this author. I like my romance with strong, obsessive alpha heroes who know what they want and for it, with STEAM and sticky bits and NO BARRIERS, where theres INTIMACY and a deep, profound connection instead of this wishy-washy nonsense. This book had none of that.

[Claire Mackenzie-neville · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are plenty of Australians who can write well, this just isn’t one of them. She can’t spell, her grammar is poor, and she likes to pretend it’s because she’s Australian rather than barely literate. She irritates me. She doesn’t even know the difference between your and you’re.

But her stories are good.

So I’ve decided I’ll keep reading her books - IF they come up for free on Bookbubs, but I will also continue to only give them 1 star until she learns to write properly.

[Kate McMurry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining brother's-best-friend, roommates romance set in Australia

Christopher Grayson (Kit AKA Chaos) is a 30-year-old, special-forces veteran. Several years ago, he started a security business called Grace Grayson with his BFF for the past 20 years, Patrick Grace (Pat AKA Hawk) and three other friends from their former special-forces team. They have done quite well financially, and Kit owns the penthouse condo in an expensive building. I assume the city this story is located in is Adelaide, not because the author overtly mentions it, but because that's where she lives, and where all of her books seem to be set.

Amber Grace is Pat's 23-year-old sister. She and Pat are extremely close. He is very protective of her and loves her more than anyone on Earth other than Kit.

Kit has known Amber since she was a toddler, because Amber and Pat's parents and the parents of Kit and his younger brother are best friends. Amber has avoided Kit as much as possible, given how much time their families spend together, for the past 10 years. She has had an enduring crush on him since she was 13. She knows it is hopeless and would be absolutely humiliated if anyone ever guessed, especially Kit himself. She has done everything in her power to make sure he will never know. Because she has refused to look at him or talk to him all these years, everyone in her family and his has assumed she hates Kit. In addition, because neither Kit nor Pat has ever had a committed relationship, instead promiscuously engaging in endless one night stands since their teens, Amber has no desire to be viewed by him as just one more of a pathetic horde of woman who are hopelessly infatuated with gorgeous, ripped Kit.

The inciting incident of this novel occurs when Amber walks into the apartment she has shared for the past three years with her long-time BFF and discovers her having sex with the man Amber has been dating for six months but has not yet herself had sex with. She immediately packs a bag and walks out. Unfortunately, she's not sure where she's going to stay, because she has no desire to sleep on Pat's couch or his bed due to all of the sexual activity that occurs on them with random strange women in his one-bedroom apartment. But she calls him anyway to see if he has any suggestions for where she can go. While she is calling him on her cell, she is standing in the rain outside her apartment building. A kindly doorman, from the expensive condo building directly across the street where Kit lives, solicitously steers her inside that building, settles her in a comfortable chair, hands her fluffy towels to dry off with, and brings her a hot cup of tea. She is very nervous that Kit will show up, not only because of her normal discomfort being around him, but because she feels she looks like a drowned rat right now. As soon as she gets hold of Pat, he rushes to her rescue and arrives at Kit's building just as Kit himself walks into the lobby. When Kit hears about Amber's situation, he offers her the rent-free use of one of his three extra bedrooms for as long as she cares to stay with him. Pat is delighted at the suggestion and strongly urges Amber to accept Kit's generous offer.

Kit has no idea why Amber can't stand him, but he is determined to do everything in his power to make her safe and comfortable.

I rated this book 5 stars the first time I read it. This time around I did not enjoy it quite as much, mainly because I'm really getting tired of "manwhore and virgin" romances. I also was turned off by many different scenes of binge drinking by all of the significant characters. That is a theme throughout this series, and it is presented as if it's just a normal way to live.

Other than those complaints, I really liked Amber and Kit. I like scholarly FMCs, and Amber is brilliant. I liked Kit's version of a Cinnamon Roll. Typically, when the MMC is former special forces, the author will throw in some kind of action-adventure subplot. In this particular series, mostly these brawny, highly competent warriors have assignments as bodyguards where they are just standing around bored, because nothing bad happens. I don't have a problem with that. I typically skip romances with a current or former special forces MMC because they are always rescuing the FMC from deadly peril, and it gets rather predictable.

Because Amber and Kit have cameo appearances in all the other books in this series, we get to experience them living their HEA as a kind of informal epilogue. At the end of this story, they are in an HFN situation that seems very promising to roll out into an HEA.

[Jai M {Cat Crazy Dragon } · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very tame for a bad boy, a little bland for warriors. Sugar sweet.

This was sweet, pleasant, and very straight lace contemporary.

I have absolutely nothing against this, any yet, I was a little bored at times.
Had some cute, quirky humour I enjoyed, but didn’t really go as far as I would have liked.

Did the usual close proximity, limited other character interaction, and a fast track romance.
To be fair, they did have an extended history of knowing each other.

But I really would have liked more world building, in regards to their lives, friends, families.
There was gold there in the comedy department, and a stronger character development for each.
What we got was just too shallow and light for my preference.

This is a straight up, lightweight, ‘nice’ romance.

Does contain a reference to past SA, but light on the details, angst, and damage.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet story with a touch of hotness. I enjoyed the history of the characters and what really was going on in their minds as opposed to what each thought the other felt. There’s history amongst the men, as well as Ambers that I wish could have been elaborated, I could have done with a longer novel. I wasn’t prepared for a quick read, I really like everyone in the story.

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quarantine read: 3.75 stars.

I actually enjoyed reading this one. Not really that angtsy nor over dramatic.

[Helen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was about as trope-y as it gets. There wasn't a lot of substance or uniqueness to distinguish it from similar "forced close quarters" / "best friend's little sister" storylines, which is a shame.

There's something to be said for a slow-burn romance. I enjoy them as much as the next person. However, this wasn't so much a slow burn as it was an awkward, stilted build-up without much burn. (The "slow" part was pretty right, the couple didn't really get together until around 67%. Then the story was quickly wrapped up, after all that longing, eye-making and waiting.)

Amber, or "Bert" as everyone calls her, implies she's had raunchy, filthy fantasies of Kit for most of her life. But at one point, when Kit fingers her for the first time, as part of foreplay for their first time together, Amber thinks this is "everything I'd ever played out in my fantasies. And then some. Kissing Kit was everything I’d dreamt of and more. But having his hand between my legs? That was even better than I’d ever imagined.". Wow. Right. Even in her "dirtiest" fantasies there's no actual sex.

I just feel like Stevens could have developed this much more and made it into something beautiful and original.

There were quite a few missing words, missing letters ("a" instead of "and"), and typos ("you get to HIM me" instead of "you get to hit me") in the book. And "I couldn't BARE for her" instead of "I couldn't bear for her"... I don't know if there was no editing or what.

[Lissa Smith Reads'~A Bookaholics Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rated
4 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Kindle Unlimited Read
Owner Amazon Digital Library

POSITIVE: Best start, moving into the.adult literature...

NEGATIVE/MEH: I was so disappointed th book ended where it ended.

POSITIVE: I'm so thankful that this was part of the Kindle Unlimited program. I thoroughly enjoyed.reading. I can't wait to meet the rest of the team in their own books.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon today (4/6/2020)! 🎁

[Char (1RadReader59) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kit always knew how sweet, special, and extremely smart Amber has always been. Yet, the only ones she ever felt truly comfortable with showing it around were her parents, Pat her brother, him, and his parents.
At thirteen, a change became evident even to him. She was turning from a cute young girl to a young lady but overly shy. She pulled into herself. He envied the easiness she kept with Pat but she started pulling away from him.
But sixteen, the easy banter they used to share when she was young was not well received and she appeared gutted or angry by anything he said. Any time she spoke to him it was with such a sharp edge and a scowl that Kit just stopped coming to family functions.
Now, several years later they are meeting again due to a breakup with a boyfriend. It’s due when she finds him in bed with her roommate and friend of twenty plus years. When she calls Pat for a ride, she meets him at the Mayhew. This is where a nice gentleman allows her out of the rain.
Just so happens Pat runs into his boss and best friend Kit who lives there. Pat tries to get out of the meeting but he can’t. She’s wet and needs to go so Kit not only offers his place to wait but his place for as long as she needs it. Pat says yes, without consulting her. Not that she’d say no, exactly.
Both Kit and Amber, with what they see in each other after so many years apart, feel awkward but they are pleased with the view. Things are tense for a while but once the ice finally breaks; they are both relieved.
I really enjoyed these alpha characters and how they took this temporarily downed bird and treated special. Let her know what she did not only for her brother while he was away on missions but for them all. That they felt they knew her. Making her family too, one of them.
This has humor, pain, sadness, and this author keeps you reading for sure. There were a few slow spots for me but not a problem. I give this: 5 stars. Free on Amazon. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

the wonderful awkwardness of these two living together while thinking the other has nothing but disdain for them while she has secretly loved him for years and he has been wary of her because he thought she hated him...while it was hilarious. But it was sweet them letting their guard down and opening up to enjoy one another's company. and the relief of friends and family that they could all get together in one place at one time now lol. It was so a holy crap moment. to think her hiding her feelings had affected so many people! I also loved her interactions with her brother's other friends. all of them were simply amazing in their own way I cannot wait to read their stories. But the blurting out of his feelings to his best friend (also the older brother of the girl he has feelings for) well poor Chaos lol. The fish out of water oh my god what was just said out loud moment is not to be missed! read this, you will have no regrets.

[Jessi Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good book

I loved the book! Story was great! Wish it was listed for Kindle unlimited. I want to read the series, but sadly will have to wait until extra money.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amber has had a crush on her brother’s best friend Kit for a while. When she needs a place to stay, Kit offers her to stay at his place. Soon sparks are flying between them both. Fast-paced read with loads of drama and steamy chemistry. I really liked it.

[Alexandra Nunney · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars

[Bookishlor · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 stars

I really enjoyed this geeky heroine, alpha hero, best friend's sibling romance! Amber and Kit's story was a lot deeper than I thought. It started off sweet and sexy with plenty of chemistry, but delved into some past trauma listed below in CW. I really connected to Amber's slightly awkward geeky side and I loved how Kit was clearly an alpha, but was so patient and understanding with her. I definitely plan on continuing this romantic series to read about Hawk's story who is Amber's brother!

CW: PTSD, anxiety, history of sexual assault

[Phyllis *the distractible · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved, loved, loved this book!
The geek and alpha male pairing was really unique and I was grinning like an idiot over their sassy banter.
The one thing I really appreciated was that it didn’t fall into that typical ‘silly misunderstanding’ type of moment, but the relationship was really mature and they actually communicated well (gasp!) with each other. We all could learn something from that!
It made me not want to finish it because it was so fantastic!

[Em]

DNF

Yeah nope. Almost dragged me in, but managed to fail. It gave a youngish vibe - a bit too youngish breaching childish. So, stopped reading.

I really want to get out of this book funk I’m in.

Plot:
Nothing to add.

[Sara]

Oh man, I need this like yesterday! February? Don't think I can wait til February!

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Full review to come when I have time.

[D Call · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good romantic comedy starring ex-military

MY RATING SYSTEM
5 stars--WOW
4 stars--would read again
3 stars--was good, won't read again
2 stars--read it, but didn't enjoy it
1 star--didn't finish, it was so awful

Do I need to read books before this one: no
Cliffhanger: no

SUMMARY
Amber aces her thesis first chapter draft, comes home to celebrate. Instead finds her best friend of 20 years having sex with her boyfriend. She packs a few things, gets stranded in the rain. The grandfatherly doorman from the swanky hotel across the way invites her to the lobby, gets her a hot drink. She calls her brother for a ride. Patrick (Hawk) finally arrives at the same time as his best friend since kindergarten and her lifelong crush, Kit (Chaos). Pat tells Kit what happened to Amber, they decide she's now staying in Kit's spare room in the penthouse. They escort her up after Kit gets her a key.

Kit has always thought Amber hates him. "When she wasn’t obviously disapproving of me and Hawk, she’d always managed to intimidate me with how smart and confident she was. But she was still my best mate’s little sister. Offering up my place had been second-nature." He doesn't know how to deal with her apathy, though.

EVALUATION
For me, the best part of this story was the guys's team dynamics. These guys are jokesters, protective, focused--whether on teasing or business.

The romance was a typical sibling's best friend trope. It was well done. The fun part is when Hawk finds out.

RECOMMENDATION
Adults who can handle the differences with Australian usage, spelling, and punctuation.

FAVORITE QUOTES
Rollie, “Why is Amber being told to help herself to Chaos’ bathroom?” Chaos, “She's staying with me. Now can we get back to the Fortescues?” “No,” Nico said simply from behind his computer. “She came home to find Dannie [having sex with] her boyfriend,” Hawk explained and the other three gasped like we were fifteen year old girls gossiping crushes. “So she packed up a suitcase and left. We bumped into Chaos in the lobby and he very kindly offered up one of his many spare rooms.” Rollie, “Wait. I thought you hated Amber?” “I never hated her. We just never–” Hawk, “Speak. Acknowledge each other. Get along.” “The Fortescues?” I tried. “No,” Nico said again. [They discuss lifestyle changes, etc.] “Fortescues?” I asked again. “Go on, then,” Nico said and that was our cue to move on.

[Amber's aced her thesis first chapter, Hawk asks for an evening off to celebrate] “We should all celebrate with her,” Tank said evenly and we all looked at him. “Come on, we all know Farrah’s going to side with Dannie.” And we were back to teenage gossip.

Older brother’s mates were off-limits. It was like an unspoken rule. Unless you were in a trashy romance and then you could have whoever the hell you wanted.

Nico, “She’s probably the coolest chick I’ve met.” Chaos, “You touch her and you’re dead.” Hawk’s mouth had been open to say something, his finger pointing at Nico. But at my words, he turned to me, still pointing at Nico, and blinked a couple of times. He finally shut his mouth, looked at Nico, back to me, another couple of blinks, then back at Nico. “Yeah.”

I tried to think about what any of my romance novel heroines would have done in this situation.

To make myself feel better, I was incredibly mature and grown up and reminded myself that Nico couldn’t have her either.

“You believe whatever you want to. I know my truth and that is, quite frankly, all that matters. What the two of you think of me is no longer my problem.”

“I can make my own decisions and it’s my birth right to either live happily with or regret those decisions later, not yours. If you hadn’t wanted to kiss me, fine. But don’t go assuming you know what I want or what’s best when I’m literally telling you what I want.”

She looked at me like she thought I should know that, no, nothing was okay. Then she almost smiled as though everything was perfect. But then we were back to the wrinkled nose and biting lip of, no, nothing’s okay.

POSSIBLE TRIGGERS (SPOILERS)
Sex: 2 scenes
Language: 91 F words, 19 Lord's name in vain, 32 S words
Violence: 3 punches

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trope-tastic, but an enjoyable read. Fairly mindless, low-angst fun.

Amber (h) returns home one day to find roommate/BFF in bed with her boyfriend. Done with both of them, she moves out, turning to her brother for help. While asking for help, his best friend (and her lifelong crush) offers to help. Christopher/Kit/Chaos (H) has known Amber all her life, and has always believed that she hated him. He offers her his guest room as a favor to his best friend, Amber's brother. But what happens to these polar opposites now that they have to face each other, no escape?

We have a lot of standard tropes here - brother's best friend, unexpected roommates, opposites attract, beautiful-but-doesn't-know-ti h, super-attractive military vets running a security company. Doesn't make it any less fun! The banter between the characters - especially the guys - is definitely a lot of fun. Probably my favorite part! Keeps the mood pretty light and enjoyable.

And I loved that they didn't want to drag out the secrecy. Once they decided to be together, and it seemed like it wouldn't immediately fizzle out, they wanted to tell family. No sneaking around. Fairly mature, as romance novel characters go!

It wasn't perfect, of course. Yes, we have a lot of formulaic characters and plot moments, very trope-tastic as I said, which isn't necessarily bad, but that also means that we of course have the irritating virgin-and-manwhore pairing. Bah. More critically - part of why it's 4 stars - there's really not a lot of drama bringing them together, so it's kinda tame slow-burn as they talk themselves into actually giving things a chance. Could have developed some of these stray plot threads into something more, a little deeper and had a really strong read. As it was, some of these things kinda pop up and then don't go really anywhere with depth.

A fair number of typos and proofreading errors, though, was the biggest factor that kept me from giving this a full 5 stars. Yes, there are a fair number of wordings that are due to being Australian English, not US or UK English. I get that. But that's slang and wording, not an excuse for missing letters, homophone mix-ups, one-letter-off typos (hit/him, etc), and similar proofreading issues.

Alternating 1st person POV. No cheating or love triangles (after Amber and Nico meet, I was worried about that one, but thankfully triangle-free). Minor OW/OM drama with Amber's ex-BF and ex-BFF. It's really more about Amber and Kit getting over their history and personal baggage to give each other a chance. Trope-filled and fairly stereoptypical stuff, but enjoyable characters make for a fun, escapist read. Drastic need of a proofreader, though. HEA but no epilogue (unfortunately). No cliffhanger.

Would I read more? Definitely. Still hope she finds a good proofreader.

[Alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

All in all, it's fun and easy read

Pros
-Great male friend dynamic! I want more of that in the stories I read!
-Despite other shortcomings, I'm glad the main character had at least some courage. For the typical "inexperienced geek" trope Amber was very outspoken. Kudos for taking the best from both worlds!
-Funny when it tried to be
-Our Chaos and Geek had pretty good chemistry. Meaning that their dialogue didn't feel forced
-I'm adding Kit to my collection of dreamy romance novel guys. He's great even if there's not much depth to the character.
-Not a lot of drama, which is always a positive
-Double PoV!!
-Did I tell you about the male friend dynamic? No, seriously, they were not only good together they were great with Amber.
-Spicy. I'd say medium spice, but hey it's still something!
-Even though we didn't get too much of them, I love all the GGS boys! (Hawk can suck on a lemon tho)
- Good message behind the whole mess with the BF and BFF

Cons
- Suffers from awkwardness. Some moments just gave me second had embarrassment or made me go "well that's not very believable..."
- Not much depth to the story (if any... which is still kinda ok? I'm not looking for Plato here). This extended to the characters as well, unfortunately. Kit suffered the brunt of it :/
- I am so over "overprotective big brother" trope. This was one of the big things that irked me and probably why I took at least a star off for it. Can we please have a brother that's happy for his sister and isn't unnecessary dumb/mean?
- I am also over the "no filter + oblivious main character" trope. She had the right spirit at times, but I wanted to shake her up even more often.
- NGL, the nicknames made me cringe every damn time. They rarely land and someone named Chaos is at the top of fle flop pile.
- Not really into the whole "DEAR READER, DID I TELL YOU: I was in the army" thing. There's no need to tell us this every other time Kit is shown as a badass or so on. The readers remember.
- Too short for its own good. Some things weren't delved into or explored enough, so character actions were often sudden or without much motivation behind it. This makes me so sad because just a few more added chapters would have greatly improved the story :(

[Stacey Mansfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful surprise

I just finished two truly terrible books that left me wondering how the author's friends could let them publish such poorly written and conceived "books".
With much trepidation, I chose another author I'd never heard of. Thankfully, I got lucky.

This book was like a palette cleansing, magical warm beverage. It was a good story, which of course is important, but that story was about the characters, which we all know is where we fall in love.

I definitely love Chaos, and I really liked Amber.
Like all books, there is room for improvement,

Chaos felt better developed than Amber. Amber's thoughts were quite limited to her self scolding and personal fears of coming across as a nitwit, and what her brother would say. I can fully sympathize, and enjoyed those moments as familiar to many of my own. I think the fact that the author kept her at the table studying, limited my ability to connect with Amber on a deeper level. I would have enjoyed hearing her thoughts on more subjects.

We got to see Chaos reflect on his past, spend time being foolish with his mates, and analyzing his own feelings. There was a depth to him that reflects the author's love of him, that inspired my own.

It didn't stop me from loving the story. Just food for thought.

Just remember, the best part of a love story is being able to put ourselves into their shoes.

Thank you for Chaos, it was very worth the read.

[Emily (Mrs B's Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

**My thanks to the author and Hidden Gems for providing me with a free copy for an honest review**

This is the first book that i have read by this author and i was pleasantly surprised, all the characters felt believable and i got really stuck into the story, the only downside is that there was not an epilogue, something i have found that i really like in my books, just to see how they are getting on further down the line.

Chaos is the best friend of her older brother Hawk. She has always been awkward around him as she has always liked him, but didn't know how to act around him. After finding her so called best friend of 20 years sleeping with her boyfriend, she walks out of her shared apartment and ends up taking refuge in a hotel over the road, where Chaos lives, but she doesn't know. When her brother comes to pick her up, Chaos appears and says she can stay in his Penthouse apartment.

It is there finally that the pair actually start getting along and Chaos starts seeing the geek in a totally new light, especially as she starts actually looking at him and having an actual conversation.

I loved the chemistry between the pair and that Chaos, Hawk and their friends and team all take Amber under their wing.

[Vivian Chrisman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chaos & the Geek aka Kit & Amber

This is the first book in a new series. It is also the first book I have read by this author. Those two factors alone can make for a challenging read. Adding them together can sometimes make for a daunting read. In my opinion, Ms. Stevens did a great job of introducing a "new world" and it's inhabitants. She explained the bond between the men of Grace Grayson Security, especially the one between Kit and Patrick(Hawk), and by extension the bond the team felt for Amber. The love-story between Kit and Amber was....I don't want to say sweet because it was more than that. Perhaps the word I'm looking for is evolving. Not only did it grow and change over the years but it also helped Kit and Amber grow and change as people. Some people may have issues with some of the wording in the story as the setting is in Australia. I will admit that even though I was a aware of this fact before starting the story I sometimes had to reread a line to understand it. Overall this didn't hamper my enjoyment of the book. Now I have to wait for Hawk's story....

*I received a copy of this book via Hidden Gems as well as purchasing a copy and am voluntarily reviewing*

[Lilah Wray · Rating 4 out of 5]

So i very much enjoyed this book. The dynamic between Kit and Amber was well thought out, yet felt natural, the romance was heartfelt and tender exactly as i wished it to be. The sex scenes were a bit too brief for my taste but i prefer that to the sort of unrealistic encounters a lot of romance authors are churning out today.
My only real criticisms are that I feel the book could have used another proof read before being published because certain words were missing or the sentence just felt incoherent.
Also, in relation to the plot, Kit is portrayed initially as this sort of bad boy, arrogant whathaveyou but he was a bit too tame. I think some more initial friction between him and amber would have been helpful.
Overall i enjoyed the story and I certainly appreciated a more realistic love story with a realistic heroine than just the common wham-bam” instalove” novellas that are popular now.
Also, I have to add how nice it was to see some positive queer representation in the novel, especially as I read this during pride month. I would be tickled pink if one of the upcoming mc’s was also queer.
I’ll definitely be looking out for Tank’s book ☺️.

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Everything about this book was perfectly predictable, but mostly in a good way. I read a ton, so I didn't find anything really unique about this book, but it was cute. I love the brother's best friend angle, and Chaos was a great leading man. I loved the characters of the security team and the fact that we got to see more than just the relationship between the leads. However, there were a ton of writing errors that were starting to bug me; the book could definitely use some additional editing. I also felt like there could have been more dialog on the friend date nights, and I wish we would have been able to read about Amber's drinks with Petra. I feel like it would have led to a more believable transition back into Amber being willing to be with Kit, after her not so believable decision not to be with him. The ending also seemed unfinished and short. What did her family think about them dating? Shouldn't Amber have had a conversation with her own brother that she was supposedly so close to? I ended the book feeling like I enjoyed it, but also like I wish I was the books editor.
I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.