We Read Indie Books RG2E! discussion

Ok, I admit it. I couldn't put the book down.

Liked: This was a good ol' fashioned romance--you're-the-only-one-for-me type. Writing was really clean, descriptive. The attraction between Nic & Lauren was solid, undeniable. The secondary characters were great and I'm sure will get their own stories (Kaden needs to dump Beth). The sort-of suspense was a nice added element that made me want to keep turning the page. In fact, I LOVED that we got more of Lauren and Nic together as a couple in those last chapters while they were dealing with Vivian. And did I mention that the sex scenes were, how do I put this? H-O-T!!! I'd read the book again for that alone. :-)

Didn't Like: HUGE plot whole at the end. Exactly WHY did Lauren not call the police when she figured out the picture? And even if she didn't, wouldn't it be Luke's job to call the police? Throughout that whole scene, I was thinking, OK, how are they going to explain this to the authorities? The rest of the plot was so clean, that I wonder if there was a scene cut out that had the police completely inefficient, ineffective, etc. so that the confrontation with Vivian was their ONLY and last option.

I was writing my thoughts and my service went down. Everything was erased. So I'll try again tomorrow. :-(

Karysa wrote: "Ok, I admit it. I couldn't put the book down.

Liked: This was a good ol' fashioned romance--you're-the-only-one-for-me type. Writing was really clean, descriptive. The attraction between Nic & Lau..."

I loved this book. In fact, I've read it several times. (Full disclosure: I'm Kristine's critique partner.) I especially liked having a movie-star hero fall in love with an ordinary woman. Nic is very, very sexy, Lauren is very relateable, and the chemistry between them is smoking hot! *fanning self*

I also liked the humor in the book (so many of the lines crack me up when the guys are joking with each other) and I loved the secondary characters, who I'm glad are getting their own stories. (Remi's is next, and oh, it's a doozy! If you enjoyed this one, be sure to pick up Deadly Addiction, which just came out. I can't wait for everyone else to read it!)

I also thought the stalker storyline was creepy; even though you know who the stalker is fairly early, the things she does are unsettling and surprising.

Karysa, regarding the scene you mentioned, here's why I think it worked as is: Jake is a bodyguard, not a police officer, so he doesn't have an obligation to call the police; he just needs to protect Lauren. And even though Lauren is pretty darn sure who the stalker is at that point, the grainy photo isn't a lock.

Besides, I took it that she felt (given who the stalker is) that she needed to take the info to Nic so that *he* could decide what to do about it. Granted, Lauren could have called the police. She chose not to. I think if she'd thought the ID was absolutely incontrovertible, she would have.

At any rate, I don't look at this as a plot hole. To me, it's a decision point, and instead of choosing A, Lauren chose B. Even if Lauren or Jake had been police officers, they might have had good reasons for not involving the cops. As long as I find a character's motivations believable, I'm fine with the decisions they make, even if I disagree with them. In this case, I think what Lauren did was plausible given all the other factors. Besides, if Lauren had called the cops in, the ending wouldn't have been as exciting. :)

But, to each her own, right? Not everything is going to work for everybody. At least you enjoyed the rest of it. And don't worry, I'm pretty sure Kaden will be single soon. :)

Dana

Ach, here it is almost the end of April and I haven't even started it, how did that happen? Sorry. Although I did decide to read The Hunger Games first since I saw the movie this weekend. However, I'm finding the book BORING. argh. I know Kristine's book will be great since it got a TOP PICK from RT and I do like those RT reviews, lol. I will read it, just might not make it in time...have to read Spencer Brokaw's, the published teen writer, book next since he's blogging with me and the Rubies in May but his book is only a novella. Might set aside Hunger Games to read it and then Kristine's!

Thank you, everyone for picking my book for April. Even though the month is now over, if any of you have more comments you want to make or aspects of the book you want to discuss, please continue to do so. I'll monitor the thread and respond to any direct questions.

I really appreciate everyone's views!

Sorry, I never got back to leave a reply earlier. I enjoyed this book. I think that Lauren and Nic have fantastic chemistry. The fact that they had a prior history in school (even though contact was minimal) makes the current relationship more believable. The only issue I had (if you can call it that) is that I wish it had been less obvious who the stalker was. But that's just my own quirk. I like the mystery of trying to figure out who the bad guy is. Can't wait to read Deadly Addiction.