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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Good and spicy, but the ending fell flat. Too “happily ever after”
3 stars
Read this early on in the year in a single day sitting, and honestly, I couldn't even tell you what this was about. I remember that the writing was well done, but the plot and the characters were pretty generic and stock. In the end, I've read better NA and Adult Romance that has actually stuck with me.
Read this early on in the year in a single day sitting, and honestly, I couldn't even tell you what this was about. I remember that the writing was well done, but the plot and the characters were pretty generic and stock. In the end, I've read better NA and Adult Romance that has actually stuck with me.
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
11/17 Read: Loved Royal!!! This book had all things I crave while reading!
4/18 Re-read: Still love Royal, will always love him and Avalon!! This is by far one if my favorites❤☠❤☠
4/18 Re-read: Still love Royal, will always love him and Avalon!! This is by far one if my favorites❤☠❤☠
medium-paced
There were things I liked about this book - I did enjoy the overall story, however the writing wasn't the best. An editor would have been beneficial, and there is a word/derogatory term used in the book at least twice that isn't something we'd consider acceptable today, so that was a little jarring to read.
The plot itself was wild, and the rest of my review will contain spoilers, so be warned! I will also be talking about content that could be triggering as well. I'll include trigger warnings first so you can skip the remainder of the review if needed!
Triggers:
- Previous death of MMC's fiancée. The book starts with this and then revisits it again later in the book. Not wildly graphic, but more than just glossed over. This was a main plot point in the book
- Rape of the fiancée that resulted in the death of their unborn baby (on page, but not detailed. Mentioned several times).
- On page violence, and a lot of it. The MMC owns a bar where bikers tend to hang out and almost every time they were there some fight broke out that ended in violence that included knives, guns, and fists.
- Attempted SA of FMC's best friend. Not shown on page, we just see the aftermath. Not a huge plot point and isn't a recurring part of the story
- Cheating by FMC's ex, who is the half-brother of the MMC.
- FMC's ex hit her while in a car, and intentionally slammed on the breaks causing her to hit her head on the window resulting in a hospital visit (she was fine)
- Mild mentions of drugs being used by random background characters
The gist of the story is that about 2 years prior to meeting our FMC Avalon, our MMC Royal came home to find his pregnant fiancée being raped and murdered by rivals of his. He murdered the three men who did it, and now drowns himself in alcohol and emotionless sex where he generally treats the women like objects until he meets Avalon, who he starts to develop feelings for.
Things I liked:
- How protective Royal was over Avalon. I love a protective MMC, and this was done in way that didn't feel overbearing. He still let her do her thing but was there to make sure she was safe (ex. she went out to a club to go dancing with a friend and she didn't even know he was there until she needed help. She was able to dance and have fun without him trying to drag her off the dance floor because he's jealous like I've read in other books)
- Avalon. She had a big heart and was quick to stand up for Royal when no one else would, even before she had gotten to know him. It was never a thought for her, she looked beyond his outward appearance and judged him for who he was and not what he looked like
- The instant pull to each other that Avalon and Royal felt
- The friendships Avalon formed with Jax and Blaine
- Uncle Mark! He seemed like a good guy
Things I didn't like:
- The writing was cringy at times. At one point the MMC said "I'm crazy at hell. The devil is in my veins and he's about to come out and play" in a serious way when threatening someone and I couldn't get past that lol
- There were a lot of characters and some side plots and many of them didn't serve a purpose. What was the point of Avalon's boss and the few mentions of her being the worst? The brief mentions of Avalon being sort of wild growing up and having to live with her Uncle who then raised her? Her ex and his new business partner cheating? All of those threads went nowhere and felt either unfinished or unnecessary.
- Another reviewer mentioned it, but I felt like Avalon was the second choice because Royal couldn't have his dead fiancée Olivia. I get that you'll never move on after the death of a loved one, but it felt like he wasn't even remotely ready to move on. He harbored a lot of guilt and was completely motivated by revenge in wanting to track down the fourth man he deemed responsible for her murder - everything else came second.
- MMC hooking up with other women on page (receives a BJ by another woman, talks about previous women)
- The entire plotline with Royal's daughter not actually being dead. That felt wildly unrealistic, especially that he never found out and the person who knew didn't tell him for more than 2 years.
- The 5 month separation. Royal basically ran away after Avalon told him she loved him because he felt like he couldn't give her what she needed. He swore he'd never love anyone but Olivia so having feelings for someone else scared him and he left town but then got arrested and was in some random county jail?? That felt like it came out of nowhere and wasn't explained, and then wasn't even addressed with Avalon when he finally showed back up.
- The lack of true epilogue. We really ended on a HFN but no engagement or talk of the future aside from "I'll never leave you again", so some more closure would have been nice
The plot itself was wild, and the rest of my review will contain spoilers, so be warned! I will also be talking about content that could be triggering as well. I'll include trigger warnings first so you can skip the remainder of the review if needed!
Triggers:
- Previous death of MMC's fiancée. The book starts with this and then revisits it again later in the book. Not wildly graphic, but more than just glossed over. This was a main plot point in the book
- Rape of the fiancée that resulted in the death of their unborn baby (on page, but not detailed. Mentioned several times).
Spoiler
we find out at the end of the book that the baby didn't actually die but that his stepdad and a cop conspired to make him think she did, and then she ended up in foster care until this came to light, but for the majority of the book Royal is grieving this loss- On page violence, and a lot of it. The MMC owns a bar where bikers tend to hang out and almost every time they were there some fight broke out that ended in violence that included knives, guns, and fists.
- Attempted SA of FMC's best friend. Not shown on page, we just see the aftermath. Not a huge plot point and isn't a recurring part of the story
- Cheating by FMC's ex, who is the half-brother of the MMC.
- FMC's ex hit her while in a car, and intentionally slammed on the breaks causing her to hit her head on the window resulting in a hospital visit (she was fine)
- Mild mentions of drugs being used by random background characters
The gist of the story is that about 2 years prior to meeting our FMC Avalon, our MMC Royal came home to find his pregnant fiancée being raped and murdered by rivals of his. He murdered the three men who did it, and now drowns himself in alcohol and emotionless sex where he generally treats the women like objects until he meets Avalon, who he starts to develop feelings for.
Things I liked:
- How protective Royal was over Avalon. I love a protective MMC, and this was done in way that didn't feel overbearing. He still let her do her thing but was there to make sure she was safe (ex. she went out to a club to go dancing with a friend and she didn't even know he was there until she needed help. She was able to dance and have fun without him trying to drag her off the dance floor because he's jealous like I've read in other books)
- Avalon. She had a big heart and was quick to stand up for Royal when no one else would, even before she had gotten to know him. It was never a thought for her, she looked beyond his outward appearance and judged him for who he was and not what he looked like
- The instant pull to each other that Avalon and Royal felt
- The friendships Avalon formed with Jax and Blaine
- Uncle Mark! He seemed like a good guy
Things I didn't like:
- The writing was cringy at times. At one point the MMC said "I'm crazy at hell. The devil is in my veins and he's about to come out and play" in a serious way when threatening someone and I couldn't get past that lol
- There were a lot of characters and some side plots and many of them didn't serve a purpose. What was the point of Avalon's boss and the few mentions of her being the worst? The brief mentions of Avalon being sort of wild growing up and having to live with her Uncle who then raised her? Her ex and his new business partner cheating? All of those threads went nowhere and felt either unfinished or unnecessary.
- Another reviewer mentioned it, but I felt like Avalon was the second choice because Royal couldn't have his dead fiancée Olivia. I get that you'll never move on after the death of a loved one, but it felt like he wasn't even remotely ready to move on. He harbored a lot of guilt and was completely motivated by revenge in wanting to track down the fourth man he deemed responsible for her murder - everything else came second.
- MMC hooking up with other women on page (receives a BJ by another woman, talks about previous women)
- The entire plotline with Royal's daughter not actually being dead. That felt wildly unrealistic, especially that he never found out and the person who knew didn't tell him for more than 2 years.
- The 5 month separation. Royal basically ran away after Avalon told him she loved him because he felt like he couldn't give her what she needed. He swore he'd never love anyone but Olivia so having feelings for someone else scared him and he left town but then got arrested and was in some random county jail?? That felt like it came out of nowhere and wasn't explained, and then wasn't even addressed with Avalon when he finally showed back up.
- The lack of true epilogue. We really ended on a HFN but no engagement or talk of the future aside from "I'll never leave you again", so some more closure would have been nice
dark
emotional
tense
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes