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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
God, these lads are fucked up, but I thoroughly enjoyed riding the rollercoaster that is their damage together.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
No le pongo 1* porque me ha entretenido y lo he terminado, pero nada en este libro tiene sentido... El romance super apresurado y de estilo wattpad (me perteneces a mi, soy muy celoso, me enamoro al momento, etc). Además de algunas escenas de abuso sexual romantizadas :/
La trama de las bandas es como si no existiera, es todo sexo pero además del malo (si hubieran dicho que es solo físico y poco a poco se enamoran vale, ¿pero que de repente no puedan vivir el uno sin el otro? Por favor...)
La trama de las bandas es como si no existiera, es todo sexo pero además del malo (si hubieran dicho que es solo físico y poco a poco se enamoran vale, ¿pero que de repente no puedan vivir el uno sin el otro? Por favor...)
2.5
This book has great reviews, but I'm just not seeing the appeal. The whole thing felt like one long, sustained and unwavering note. It got a little old.
The book is primarily sex. I knew that going in, so no complaints. But it seemed to be on repeat. I'm not sure if X and Rush had a lot of sex or if I just read the same sex scene 5 times. The plot was weak and for two men running large criminal organizations, they seemed to do very little actual work.
I hate to say it, but Rush was written as a woman. Really. He cried all the time, was described as needy and sexually hungry (all at the same time). He often fainted when he climaxed. X joked about knocking him up and told him how much he liked seeing him in his kitchen. Not to mention Rush was always on the receiving end in bed.
It would have taken little more than a change in pronouns for him to be female and other than the fact that it's unlikely a woman would have headed part of the Russian mob, a female would have fit the descriptions better. It would have been a Glen Close, boil the bunny type woman for sure, but still would have fit the character.
I also have to address the whole "safe word" thing. Yes, I understand that in real life BDSM safe words are important. In the same way that if you plan on having anonymous sex you need to use a condom. I get that. But if erotic authors religiously ensure to point out the partners stopping and rolling one on, it breaks the fantasy. The book risks feeling like an object lesson instead of a fun sexual romp.
Safe words here played the same role. X and Rush spent the beginning of the book enacting real violence, waving guns and throwing threats. But the second anything drifted toward sex, X would stop to ensure Rush remembered his safe word. What?
When faced with such complete violently erotic abandon as the rest of the book exemplified, the use of said safe word struck a false and out of place note. It broke the narrative and reminded the reader that there was an author somewhere who stopped at her keyboard and thought, "oh, I better use safe words or real BDSMers will call me out for being unsafe." Hello, they're already being unsafe—Rush let X choke him unconscious their second time together. Why bother?
My biggest issue however, was that once Rush had elbowed his way into X's life the whole rest of the book was just a broken record of "I love you," "I need you." "Stay with me." In the last half of the book "love" was used 36 times. I get that the author was ensuring that the reader understood the depth of emotion these men felt (even though the whole book occurs in maybe a week), but it was too much. I felt beat over the head with it and eventually wanted to gag on it.
Generally, I love some broken men. I love crazy violent pairings. But this was too much of a good thing, with not enough of anything else to balance the cray-cray.
The writing itself was fine and I liked finding people of color as main characters for a change. The editing could have used a little more attention, though. All in all, I think this one just wasn't for me.
This book has great reviews, but I'm just not seeing the appeal. The whole thing felt like one long, sustained and unwavering note. It got a little old.
The book is primarily sex. I knew that going in, so no complaints. But it seemed to be on repeat. I'm not sure if X and Rush had a lot of sex or if I just read the same sex scene 5 times. The plot was weak and for two men running large criminal organizations, they seemed to do very little actual work.
I hate to say it, but Rush was written as a woman. Really. He cried all the time, was described as needy and sexually hungry (all at the same time). He often fainted when he climaxed. X joked about knocking him up and told him how much he liked seeing him in his kitchen. Not to mention Rush was always on the receiving end in bed.
It would have taken little more than a change in pronouns for him to be female and other than the fact that it's unlikely a woman would have headed part of the Russian mob, a female would have fit the descriptions better. It would have been a Glen Close, boil the bunny type woman for sure, but still would have fit the character.
I also have to address the whole "safe word" thing. Yes, I understand that in real life BDSM safe words are important. In the same way that if you plan on having anonymous sex you need to use a condom. I get that. But if erotic authors religiously ensure to point out the partners stopping and rolling one on, it breaks the fantasy. The book risks feeling like an object lesson instead of a fun sexual romp.
Safe words here played the same role. X and Rush spent the beginning of the book enacting real violence, waving guns and throwing threats. But the second anything drifted toward sex, X would stop to ensure Rush remembered his safe word. What?
When faced with such complete violently erotic abandon as the rest of the book exemplified, the use of said safe word struck a false and out of place note. It broke the narrative and reminded the reader that there was an author somewhere who stopped at her keyboard and thought, "oh, I better use safe words or real BDSMers will call me out for being unsafe." Hello, they're already being unsafe—Rush let X choke him unconscious their second time together. Why bother?
My biggest issue however, was that once Rush had elbowed his way into X's life the whole rest of the book was just a broken record of "I love you," "I need you." "Stay with me." In the last half of the book "love" was used 36 times. I get that the author was ensuring that the reader understood the depth of emotion these men felt (even though the whole book occurs in maybe a week), but it was too much. I felt beat over the head with it and eventually wanted to gag on it.
Generally, I love some broken men. I love crazy violent pairings. But this was too much of a good thing, with not enough of anything else to balance the cray-cray.
The writing itself was fine and I liked finding people of color as main characters for a change. The editing could have used a little more attention, though. All in all, I think this one just wasn't for me.
i didn't expect to love this so much? i adored it. i really did dislike the sinners series and had fairly low expectations. but x and rush came through. this is right up there for me with Call The Coroner!
Pretty much right on the line between dislike and like. The story itself, the character development and the development of their relationship was pretty weak, the sex scenes were okay (despite there being a supposed dom sub relationship we only really explored the pain kink and hear a few mentions of safeword). The conflict was entirely predictable, the angst was great, the resolution was stupid and anticlimactic.
I don't remember why I put this book on my want to read list but it didn't live up to the expectations. I'd say it falls into the same category as bad fanfiction. There was some potential but I wish everything was more fleshed out.
I don't remember why I put this book on my want to read list but it didn't live up to the expectations. I'd say it falls into the same category as bad fanfiction. There was some potential but I wish everything was more fleshed out.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really liked this book. It felt real; the voices for X and Dima felt real, like guys you would into on the street. Dima is intense and violent and raw, but still a compelling character and someone I would follow throughout a story. X and him felt good together. And the fallout of the secrets that were kept felt real too.
This book isn't for the faint of heart, but its definitely worth the ride. If you can get into two characters who aren't perfect and don't do nice things for a living, its worth the read the buy.
I felt like the sexual scenes matched the pacing of the story and the emotional narrative.
This book isn't for the faint of heart, but its definitely worth the ride. If you can get into two characters who aren't perfect and don't do nice things for a living, its worth the read the buy.
I felt like the sexual scenes matched the pacing of the story and the emotional narrative.