I'm waffling with this review and not sure whether I go with 2 or 3 so I'll hit it with a 2.5. (This means, for GR purposes, it gets rounded up to 3). Anyways, I liked this book and loved the story line itself. I know many who reviewed it thought the heroine acted too young for her 35 years, but I'd have to disagree. I'm 35 (though single and no kids) and if I ran into a guy like Slate, I can't say that I'd act very different. He'd have me all confused and tied up in knots and I'd probably act like a moron at times. Hot guys can do that to normally sane, rational women. I know this from experience. I didn't mind his bossiness either. Sure some of his demands were a bit outrageous but nothing out of the ordinary considering other BDSM stories I've read. (Note, there isn't any of this really; he's just a dominant guy, in and out of the bedroom.) And sure, he acted like a complete alpha-hole when he told her not to show up at his place unless he was there and said it was okay (among other alpha-hole behavior), but when all was revealed later on, some of those directives made sense too. I hated Jack and this was one part of the story that I just couldn't get my head around and why this was a 2.5 and not a 3. Why in hell did she stay with him? I don't care what anyone said or about not letting Jack in on the fact Sammie knew something was up. The first time he hit me I'd have hightailed it out of there and lived out of my Mercedes. (and omg, when he raped her?! No. Just no freaking way! None of this "I'll sleep in a separate room with a lock" crap. No way. No how. Not only was that a stupid decision for her (and for the other person affected though I won't go into details b/c it's a major spoiler) but it also is a horrible lesson for her daughter. I'm not endangering myself or my loved ones because I want to get the upper hand with my douche bag husband. Nope. Not ever. Not ever, ever, EVER. And I hate seeing heroines engage in this behavior. It's a personal pet peeve of mine though and has nothing to do with the writing, style or book itself. I just, for my own reasons, have a hard time abiding by this type of thing. Yes, sometimes it can be in a way that doesn't make me lock myself in a closet; but most often, it's not.
The other thing that bothered me was Sammie never told Slate her name. He kept calling her Sunnie or Diamond Girl and after awhile it grated on my nerves. I know, I know. They were both keeping secrets. But it still went on for way too long. And how did Taz and Donovan not make the connection between Sammie and Slate?! *shakes head* Wouldn't they have had a picture of her in their file? That didn't make sense either.
Despite these issues, I still liked it enough to finish the book. And I will likely read more in this series at some point as I do want to see what happens with Lindsey and Taz. The writing was good, and has the potential to improve with time and experience. There weren't any glaring editing issues I saw that jarred me from the story either so that is a definite plus as well.
*This book was a self purchase. All opinions are my own.*
