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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
You know that saying, 'Don't judge a book by its cover'? I think it was created for this book. Cover is dark and hot, hot, hot - and the story is definitely not.
I mean, honestly, when the best part of a book is a collection of rape scenes at the beginning, you know you're having a bad time.
So, the book opens with musician Jay. He has serious issues relating to some massive scars on his back. He decides suddenly that covering them with tattoos will totally help him, so he goes to see a tatoo artist, who happens to be our heroine Charlee. Charlee is actually in hiding from a man who won her in a poker game and used her as a sex slave for two years.
As soon as Jay speaks to Charlee, he falls in insta-love/lust. In fact, Charlee is shooting out some serious pheromones because every man who meets her seems to become obsessed with her for no real reason. I did manage to finish the book, and I still can't figure out why. Jay only ever talks about how beautiful she is, so I guess that's all then.
Anyway, that night after they meet, Charlee goes off to meet her boyfriend. (Yes, she has a boyfriend, but don't worry, she doesn't love him, and she forgets about him almost instantly. *eyeroll*) They end up back at her tattoo shop and a hitman comes in, kills her boyfriend, and takes her back to Roy, the sadist who had imprisoned her before.
For the next two months, Jay works on cleaning up his act (no drugs, sex, etc.), so that he can "deserve" Charlee when he meets her again. Charlee spends that time getting horrifically raped and beaten and thinking about Jay. Yes, that's right. She thinks about a guy she met for one hour instead of the guy she dated for over a year. A guy who she said earlier in the book rescued her emotionally from the hell she was living in and was shot and killed for being with her.
After two months, her boyfriend's brother manages to get her out of Roy's building, and they go on the run. Then the book skips ahead three years. During those three years, Charlee has been trying to find a way to communicate with Jay, and Jay has been doing every drug he can find and banging every chick he can reach with his dick and calling them all Charlee (because he thinks Charlee is dead, and he's so broken up about it).
So they finally meet, are totally obsessed with each other, and then the book slows waaaaaay down. How slow, do you ask? Well, the middle 50% of the book takes place over ONE day. Oh yeah, I'm serious. It takes two chapters for them to walk across a parking lot. Four chapters for them to not have sex in an airplane bathroom. I mean, it's just nuts. Like, nothing happens for two hundred pages. Why did no one think to cut this down? It's like the same conversation over and over again.
So, then Charlee leaves Jay because she thinks he did something bad. She goes off to see a Dom because BDSM is how she handles her emotions, and then the reader basically gets an intro to BDSM lesson to explain why people like it and that it's safe in the right environment, blah, blah, blah. Honestly, save it for Wikipedia. I just want something to happen in this story already!
Eventually Roy comes back for the coup de grâce, and the book ends in the silliest, cheesiest way ever.
Overall, not a fan. Besides the terrible lack of plot through much of the book, there is no real chemistry between the MCs and neither of them are very interesting to read about. It seems like the whole foundation of the book was supposed to be shock value and nothing else. Look at how damaged the people are, look at all the horrific things that happen to them. And then? Really nothing. Nathan was probably the most thought out and enjoyable character in the book, to be honest, and he's just her bodyguard.
A whole week of my life wasted.
I mean, honestly, when the best part of a book is a collection of rape scenes at the beginning, you know you're having a bad time.
So, the book opens with musician Jay. He has serious issues relating to some massive scars on his back. He decides suddenly that covering them with tattoos will totally help him, so he goes to see a tatoo artist, who happens to be our heroine Charlee. Charlee is actually in hiding from a man who won her in a poker game and used her as a sex slave for two years.
As soon as Jay speaks to Charlee, he falls in insta-love/lust. In fact, Charlee is shooting out some serious pheromones because every man who meets her seems to become obsessed with her for no real reason. I did manage to finish the book, and I still can't figure out why. Jay only ever talks about how beautiful she is, so I guess that's all then.
Anyway, that night after they meet, Charlee goes off to meet her boyfriend. (Yes, she has a boyfriend, but don't worry, she doesn't love him, and she forgets about him almost instantly. *eyeroll*) They end up back at her tattoo shop and a hitman comes in, kills her boyfriend, and takes her back to Roy, the sadist who had imprisoned her before.
For the next two months, Jay works on cleaning up his act (no drugs, sex, etc.), so that he can "deserve" Charlee when he meets her again. Charlee spends that time getting horrifically raped and beaten and thinking about Jay. Yes, that's right. She thinks about a guy she met for one hour instead of the guy she dated for over a year. A guy who she said earlier in the book rescued her emotionally from the hell she was living in and was shot and killed for being with her.
After two months, her boyfriend's brother manages to get her out of Roy's building, and they go on the run. Then the book skips ahead three years. During those three years, Charlee has been trying to find a way to communicate with Jay, and Jay has been doing every drug he can find and banging every chick he can reach with his dick and calling them all Charlee (because he thinks Charlee is dead, and he's so broken up about it).
So they finally meet, are totally obsessed with each other, and then the book slows waaaaaay down. How slow, do you ask? Well, the middle 50% of the book takes place over ONE day. Oh yeah, I'm serious. It takes two chapters for them to walk across a parking lot. Four chapters for them to not have sex in an airplane bathroom. I mean, it's just nuts. Like, nothing happens for two hundred pages. Why did no one think to cut this down? It's like the same conversation over and over again.
So, then Charlee leaves Jay because she thinks he did something bad. She goes off to see a Dom because BDSM is how she handles her emotions, and then the reader basically gets an intro to BDSM lesson to explain why people like it and that it's safe in the right environment, blah, blah, blah. Honestly, save it for Wikipedia. I just want something to happen in this story already!
Eventually Roy comes back for the coup de grâce, and the book ends in the silliest, cheesiest way ever.
Overall, not a fan. Besides the terrible lack of plot through much of the book, there is no real chemistry between the MCs and neither of them are very interesting to read about. It seems like the whole foundation of the book was supposed to be shock value and nothing else. Look at how damaged the people are, look at all the horrific things that happen to them. And then? Really nothing. Nathan was probably the most thought out and enjoyable character in the book, to be honest, and he's just her bodyguard.
A whole week of my life wasted.
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Good read! My only complaint is that the relationship happened way too fast. Am looking forward to future work from this author!
4.5 STARS
So there I was, just another ordinary reader, innocently looking for my next read ... When, out of the blue a title pops up on my GR feed. Beneath the Burn "Oh, what an interesting title!" I exclaimed. Quickly I skimmed through the plethora of 4 & 5 star ratings, without actually reading any of the reviews and barely glancing at the book description. "This is it!" I decided and dove right in, with images of Rockstars & Romance.
And then ... Wack!
That's right ... bitch slapped!
This book was dark, pulse pounding, anxiety fueling, & utterly gut-wrenching. But it was also lust filled, romantic & wonderfully erotic.
I was sucked in from the beginning and kept in rapture right up til the, not so bitter end.
This would have been a 5 star rating ...
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed the beginning (& even looong middle), I loathed the ending of this book. I was expecting more shock, more awe. But all I got was predictable and sickly sweet. It's great if you're one of those readers who require a happily ever after. For me, it just felt forced and left me feeling a little unsatisfied.
Overall, it was an extraordinarily entertaining book. It took me by surprise & spit me out on the other side feeling a little emotionally and psychologically damaged. Otherwise .... a terrific read!
So there I was, just another ordinary reader, innocently looking for my next read ... When, out of the blue a title pops up on my GR feed. Beneath the Burn "Oh, what an interesting title!" I exclaimed. Quickly I skimmed through the plethora of 4 & 5 star ratings, without actually reading any of the reviews and barely glancing at the book description. "This is it!" I decided and dove right in, with images of Rockstars & Romance.
And then ... Wack!
That's right ... bitch slapped!
This book was dark, pulse pounding, anxiety fueling, & utterly gut-wrenching. But it was also lust filled, romantic & wonderfully erotic.
I was sucked in from the beginning and kept in rapture right up til the, not so bitter end.
This would have been a 5 star rating ...
Unfortunately, as much as I enjoyed the beginning (& even looong middle), I loathed the ending of this book. I was expecting more shock, more awe. But all I got was predictable and sickly sweet. It's great if you're one of those readers who require a happily ever after. For me, it just felt forced and left me feeling a little unsatisfied.
Overall, it was an extraordinarily entertaining book. It took me by surprise & spit me out on the other side feeling a little emotionally and psychologically damaged. Otherwise .... a terrific read!
4.5 stars
Beneath the Burn was gritty, dark, disturbingly brutal and violent. The months Charlee was recaptured and forced to return to slavery were hard to read. There's insta connection between Charlee and Jay and the one hour they spent together, mostly in silence, built a connection that helped each deal with their own demons. This story is not for the faint of heart but is so worth reading.
Beneath the Burn was gritty, dark, disturbingly brutal and violent. The months Charlee was recaptured and forced to return to slavery were hard to read. There's insta connection between Charlee and Jay and the one hour they spent together, mostly in silence, built a connection that helped each deal with their own demons. This story is not for the faint of heart but is so worth reading.
3,5*
“‘All yours, Charlee.’ Every. Single. Breath.”
Beneath the Burn is an intense and gripping read. I had a fear about the writing but it surprised me and Godwin definitely has the ability to immerse the reader into the story, especially during the more intense parts.
However, the pace was a bit messy. There were parts where I kept turning the pages, wanting more and parts where I found myself being bored and sometimes even annoyed at the characters and about what was happening. My main problems with the pacing was that firstly, the book is fairly long for what it is but at the same time, I’m glad it was just one book. Concerning the story and action as a whole, the pace was great at the beginning and it picked up towards the end but the middle of the book felt very long and dragged on and I had to force myself to continue. Secondly, the love story happened way TOO FAST. It was even worse than the usual insta-love.
Character wise, I absolutely loved Charlee, she’s a strong female character who went through so much but who still doesn’t fuck with anyones shit. I loved reading in her point of view and seeing how vulnerable yet so strong she was. Jay, is a whole other issue, on the one hand I loved his tragic and caring self, the lead singer of this rock band fighting his demons, on the other hand, his rockstar Jay self, the one who takes drugs and expects no one to notice was infuriating.Though, even if he had his flaws (and again, even if it was TOO FAST) I rooted for Charlee and Jay and of course, I didn’t want her in the hands of the bastard that was Roy Oxford.
About the side characters, I really really loved Nathan, he respectfully and honestly cared about Charlee and her well-being
I considered rating this 4 stars towards the beginning of the book because of how gripping, heartbreaking and intense it was but the length and the reasons mentioned before didn’t do it for me. I nonetheless look forward to reading Godwin’s other work.
“‘All yours, Charlee.’ Every. Single. Breath.”
Beneath the Burn is an intense and gripping read. I had a fear about the writing but it surprised me and Godwin definitely has the ability to immerse the reader into the story, especially during the more intense parts.
However, the pace was a bit messy. There were parts where I kept turning the pages, wanting more and parts where I found myself being bored and sometimes even annoyed at the characters and about what was happening. My main problems with the pacing was that firstly, the book is fairly long for what it is but at the same time, I’m glad it was just one book. Concerning the story and action as a whole, the pace was great at the beginning and it picked up towards the end
Spoiler
(let me mention that the ending was SO satisfying, even if it was heartbreaking too, and I might have shed a tear or two)Spoiler
Especially after Charlee and Jay reunited. Their reunion, the kidnapping attempt, them talking about their troubles, realising they were in love with each other and heck, even their first sex scene: everything happened in the span of two days, TWO FUCKING DAYS. I understand they longued each other for three years but still, that was extremely fast.Spoiler
I had other problems too, the first one seems futile and a bit of a stretch but there was an Asian hitman/(Craig?), and it was the only time actual race was mentioned during a description. I didn’t feel it necessary. Another one was the words used to describe some of the first sex scenes with Jay, words such as “assault” and the insistence on possession bothered me because they’re often words associated with toxic behavior. Toxic behavior, actual assault that Charlee already experienced and that were already described in horrid details during Charlee’s two-month captivity at the beginning of the book. Better words should have been chosen even if it was clear that Jay’s sexual relationship with Charlee was consensual (not all the time though, sadly) and especially since Jay is supposed to be her salvation. About the latter, I sometimes felt like the novel was romanticizing healing. It was mostly a “you save me, I save you” narrative but I guess, it’s something common in this genre. Though, it was handled very well whether it was with Jay’s demons or Charlee’s. And healing through romance is still healing nonetheless. I also wanted to know more about Charlee’s captivity from when she was 16 or how she was on the run before meeting Noah or even, how she met him and her life with him. A few details were given but it wasn’t enough for me.Character wise, I absolutely loved Charlee, she’s a strong female character who went through so much but who still doesn’t fuck with anyones shit. I loved reading in her point of view and seeing how vulnerable yet so strong she was. Jay, is a whole other issue, on the one hand I loved his tragic and caring self, the lead singer of this rock band fighting his demons, on the other hand, his rockstar Jay self, the one who takes drugs and expects no one to notice was infuriating.Though, even if he had his flaws (and again, even if it was TOO FAST) I rooted for Charlee and Jay and of course, I didn’t want her in the hands of the bastard that was Roy Oxford.
About the side characters, I really really loved Nathan, he respectfully and honestly cared about Charlee and her well-being
Spoiler
even if she cost his brother’s death, and even if he didn’t have a great relationship with her new lover. Though, there was an annoying jealousy thing going on from Jay, who kept being jealous of Nathan even if it was said multiple times that he and Charlee thought themselves as siblings.I considered rating this 4 stars towards the beginning of the book because of how gripping, heartbreaking and intense it was but the length and the reasons mentioned before didn’t do it for me. I nonetheless look forward to reading Godwin’s other work.
This book is a thick boy and I loved every single page! I was completely enraptured as I turned page after page, dying to discover where this story would go. To be honest, I had NO CLUE what this book was going to be like, and going in blind just added to my complete enjoyment of the story.
Pain and suffering are not always easy things to write about, but Pam Godwin executes her stories with such precision that I not only can empathize with these characters, but I am so immersed in the story that their happy ending is a soul-deep necessity.
The development of Jay and Charlee was beautiful to read, and while both of their stories are so hurtful to experience, I lived for the two of them finally coming together and creating something spectacular.
As always, Pam is my unicorn and she sold me on yet another subgenre of romance she has mastered.
Pain and suffering are not always easy things to write about, but Pam Godwin executes her stories with such precision that I not only can empathize with these characters, but I am so immersed in the story that their happy ending is a soul-deep necessity.
The development of Jay and Charlee was beautiful to read, and while both of their stories are so hurtful to experience, I lived for the two of them finally coming together and creating something spectacular.
As always, Pam is my unicorn and she sold me on yet another subgenre of romance she has mastered.
this started out really good, but I was disappointed with the ending. I was really hoping for a better ending
This book was just not my type of book. It was a freebie and I didn't quite realize what I was getting into when I started it. It did keep me reading till the end though and I even almost cried at the end. I love books where the two characters are very messed up and they need each other to breathe, but this one was very graphic and explicit. I didn't realize it was a thriller until right before I started it and I am not that much into thrillers.