Get Your Copy Hunter (Hunting Her, #1) Outlined By Eden Summers Released Through Electronic Format
DISCLAIMER: I RECEIVED AN EARC FROM THE PUBLISHER THROUGH NET GALLEY, I VOLUNTARILY OFFER MY HONEST REVIEW OF THE BOOK, THOUGH IT IS NOT EXPECTED OF ME! RECEIPT OF THIS BOOK IN THIS MANNER DOES NOT AFFECT MY OPINION OF THE BOOK OR THE CONTENT OF MY REVIEW!
I have a love/hate relationship with Eden Summers' work, as I really think she peaked with the Reckless Beat series.
To me, this book was a disaster!
The one thing I liked in the book, which saved it from astar rating or even a DNF, was Sarah/Steph's kickbutt independent attitude.
She liked to be in control, sometimes a little too much, but I liked that she owned it.
However, Hunter wound up coming across as high handed much of the time, despite the fact that he was actually doing what was best for Sarah/Steph.
The book wound up using sex as a weapon between them a few times, and it wasn't that enjoyable to me when it was.
Sure, some of the scenes were steamy, but it felt, . . wrong somehow to me, and had me skimming over those scenes,
I have to say I agree with one other reviewer, that likened this read to Classic Trek.
I wish I had thought of that as I was reading it, it would have been much more enjoyable to me that way! As it is, it's not worth rereading for me to find out.
I think this is going to be the "straw that breaks the camel's back" for me, as I doubt I will continue to read the author's work.
I LOVE Eden's books!
This was unlike any story of hers I've read before, A romantic suspense to its core, it's full of twists that I certainly wasn't expecting!
The heroine whose name is purposely being omitted was one of my favorites.
She put on a tough exterior, but her internal thoughts of wanting to seek comfort from Hunter were beautifully done.
Because they were believable. I consider myself an independent woman, but I love the comfort of my husband when I need it, and I think a lot of current romance novels portray wanting male comfort as a bad thing, which I do not agree with.
Back to the topic of a hot guy, Hunter was AWESOME, Talk about strong and deadly, But it was his actions toward the heroine that really made me melt, His dialogue towards the end of the book was just so endearing!
The chemistry between the two was off the charts.
They truly had a connection to each other, and I loved reading how each felt about the other.
I honestly didn't even read the synopsis for this before I agreed to review it because I knew anything written by Eden would be stellar.
And I was RIGHT!
I received a copy of this book in consideration of an honest review Blurb And Cover
Let me preface by saying that I dont think the blurb and book are a match its spun from an angle thats not really there because he never lessens her need for vengeance and she never catches that he has an agenda until he makes a move that forces his hand to either directly lie or tell her the scoop.
Anyway, its not a blurb that I think paints an accurate picture of this book,
The cover, however, is
Moving on
Premise
Hes a contractor for the mob.
Shes scorned, angry, lonely, and singularly focused on vengeance, They find themselves looking for answers to two different questions from the same source, Again, I wouldnt call this “cat and mouse” so much as both must keep their truths and agendas close to their vests.
Sexual attraction leads, questions follow, and feelings threaten to turn both their agendas on their heads, Lust and feelings converge, but trust will be the yield sign that steers whether theyll both get what they want.
Characters
Her
I glance
at him, and hes right there staring back at me, strumming my pussy with his caged emotions.
Apparently, the mix of adrenaline and whiskey has made me reckless, Im a panty slip away from taking this guy home, This devilishly sexy man with his shadowy intrigue and penetrating eyes, My heart palpitates. My sternum itches. I want to drag him to my apartment by his dick, I would strip him. Devour him.
“Oh, goodie, ” I release a derisive chuckle, “Is this where Im supposed to swoon”
Lets just call the FMC a bit sexually aggressive.
It was refreshing to see a female character completely at ease with her body and desires,
Shes strong. A fighter. But, shes also intelligent about her strengths and weaknesses, Again, refreshing to see an FMC thats neither damsel nor/Rambo,
Thats not to say her character wasnt without flaws, Her inner monologues were a tad bit too repetitive and long, Her switches were flipped too easily, Her character profile of guilt vs revenge was a little too whitewashed I get not wanting blood to infect the innocent survivors, but men of that particular nature dont have innocent survivors they leave behind victims, not loved ones.
Him
I frown, Is this some weird female fuckery How the hell do I show her without words or the sex she claims this is about Decker was right.
Im the dumbest asshole when it comes to women,
Possessive. Dirty. Antihero. Villain with a white shirt, He checks all the boxes, He comes off as authentic, believable, His inner thoughts are a little lacking in getting us from contractor to smitten kitten, Theres a lack of depth here that keeps him in thestar character category, I wanted more roots in his character tree, but the author just focused on the pretty blooms at the end of the branches.
As a result, I never connected with him,
Decker
Side character with cool lines
I fing love the snarky dark humor that occasionally pokes its head out
Decker raises a brow as his gaze drops to Hunters stomach.
“You two are motherfucking crazy, I feel like Ive just witnessed a satanic mating ritual, ”
Problem is that hes just that a punchline, Like the MMC, his character didnt really have a lot of depth,
Storyline
Flow is good, I wasnt bored. I wasnt certain about all the hows this would play out, Writing itself is clean no big errors, jumps, or nonsense devices, I felt satisfied that the author presented her story points, brought them to a head, and neatly resolved them.
My complaint comes in the last, I like the scene that brings the vengeance to a head, but not the aftermath of that scene.
Torian spent the entire book painted one way to end like a cartoon version of his role, complete with “chuckling.
” The sweep here was lazy, unbelievable, and completely against the grain of everything prior to the scene.
The endcute was cute a HFN situation that brings the reader back full circle,
Dark Ehhhh there is a guy that gets slapped around and drugged by the FMC before he dies.
Another vengeance kill because he killed the FMCs family, The MMC skirts the truth of his profession as a contractor, But, dark in the sense that most mafia books are dark No,
Edited to mention this wasnt advertised as a dark book, but I mention it because some reviews reference how horribly dark and violent the FMC is.
As a comparison to other mafia niches and vengeance niches, this is mild,
Same with the sex, Erotica sure, its graphic enough, Rough Uhm, not really on my scale, but then Ive read some shit that makesShades look like a Saved By The Bell episode.
Its not exactly vanilla, but this is not the kinky fuckery of a “dark” book,
This book is what I like to call Navy Blue, meaning there isnt any clutching of pearls nor is it light and fluffy throughout.
With a different outcome for the climax no pun intended in the storyline and more MMC depth, this couldve been astar read.
As is,.stars. Worth the read, but not something that will go in your favorite book bucket, .