I have really enjoyed others series (both contemporary and fantasy/paranormal) from this author but I was kinda worried about the warning about how dark this series was. To be so far its not dark so don’t let that deter you or anything. I just had waited to be in the right mind space for this book and was happy to see it wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. I wish I had started it sooner!
This book started with a bang, literally hahaha. It was so sexy, so fun to live through Briar and wish I had done that in college! Boy does her world turn upside when she realizes she just did some sexy things with her stepbrother and his besties. The tension in this book is great, I loved seeing them try to stay away (except one who didnt participate that night when they first met) and one by one they fell for her. There was so longing and some hard-fought moments between them but I was happy to see at least one break through in book 1 and we didnt have to wait til book 2 for that. Briar goes through a lot in this book, the plot is jammed packed and it makes it go really fast (like while I was listening I didnt realize how fast I was going through it because I was so engaged and lost in the story). I absolutely loved some of the guys, their personalities are some of my favorite themes/types. I am not a fan of one yet but that because he hasn’t gotten his stick out of his you know where quite yet. One is more recent so I will hold judgement for him but the twins….yes please 😍😍😍. And did I forget to mention the puppies?!?! This book made me smile quite a bit besides the tough topics (murder, assault, etc.). I still want Briar though to confront her mother and hold her accountable for everything, we saw some glimpses but based on how she threw Briar for a loop when she came home this summer, I would have thought it would have been more confrontations/blow-ups. Maybe that will come in book 2. I enjoyed the side characters in this story too. I am glad Briar made some friends and the baddies in this one are done well too, really makes the story come to life. I cannot wait for book 2, I had to download the ebook to see what happened after that ending! Thank goodness the series is complete now or I would have been aching after that cliffy (in the best way though since I love them) ❤️.
In terms of narration, I haven’t listened to her before but I was really surprised and happy with her performances. I thought I would miss having a male narrator but that wasn’t the case here. She did a good job with all the different personalities. There wasn’t so much a lot of accents, but the tone and intonations were done well so you knew like the stepdad was talking or the meek nerdy guy friend haha. The darker aspects of the story I thought were enhanced by the performance from the narrator. You could feel the angst, the tension, the heartbreak, the FEAR, really a good job sinking into these characters and honing in on the important parts to emphasize and the nuances needed.
Easily 5/5 stars from me, highly recommend. Will be getting book 2 once its available on audio laters this month!
🎧 Audiobook Obsession Reviewer – Flock Team 🎧