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little_miss_reader's review against another edition
4.0
3.75 stars
It was good book, an easy read, but something was missing for me. Some parts of the story seemed unrealistic and shallow.
It was good book, an easy read, but something was missing for me. Some parts of the story seemed unrealistic and shallow.
lili_darknight's review
3.0
Predvídateľný a presladený príbeh, ale to som čakala - hneď po tom, ako som si prečítala popis. Problém teda nebol s tým, že by ma z toho "cukru" boleli zuby. Autorka vlastne vytvorila dve samostatné časti, ktoré zabudla prepojiť. Napchala toho príliš veľa do príliš málo priestoru. Takže som mala trošku problém "zožrať" autorke to, o čom som čítala. Som zvedavá, ako dopadne druhý diel.
recenzia: http://lili-darknight.blogspot.sk/2015/07/zromantizovany-gangster.html
recenzia: http://lili-darknight.blogspot.sk/2015/07/zromantizovany-gangster.html
geekygraceelyse's review
5.0
What happens when a High School teacher from a small town, and an underground fighter and gang member from Miami meet?
Katie Foster teaches History at her local high school while trying to avoid run-ins with her Ex-husband at all costs. Marcos Rivera is an Original Gangster of Los Corredores and an underground fighter, trying to get his life together – and failing.
But when the two collide – literally – the night of New Years, the chemistry that sparks between them isn’t something they can forget about.
The Viper is the first in the Untamed Hearts series by Kele Moon and is the spin off from Moon’s previous series; Battered Hearts.
A remarkably enjoyable novel, written in dual P.O.V, The Viper is full of passionate characters and exciting plot lines. Adult, New Adult readers, and lovers of kick-ass characters in romance novels will love this book.
Katie Foster teaches History at her local high school while trying to avoid run-ins with her Ex-husband at all costs. Marcos Rivera is an Original Gangster of Los Corredores and an underground fighter, trying to get his life together – and failing.
But when the two collide – literally – the night of New Years, the chemistry that sparks between them isn’t something they can forget about.
The Viper is the first in the Untamed Hearts series by Kele Moon and is the spin off from Moon’s previous series; Battered Hearts.
A remarkably enjoyable novel, written in dual P.O.V, The Viper is full of passionate characters and exciting plot lines. Adult, New Adult readers, and lovers of kick-ass characters in romance novels will love this book.
mrsbatts610's review
5.0
Another excellent book by Kele Moon. I'm going to have to do a reread though, as I started reading it a few hours after knee surgery and I may have been a little loopy.
rhodered's review
3.0
Enjoyed, although it would have been fun to explore their relationship for longer and in more ways than just the lovey dovey stuff. The cultural differences and her life adjusting seem more interesting than simply how they met.
whataboutlindus's review
2.0
Full review here
(*no spoilers*)
I had a lot of mixed emotions while reading this book. For me, the start was just very slow - first 30% did not give me anything that I liked. There's a lot of rambling from me in later paragraphs. To be honest, I only finished this book because of The Slayer (Untamed Hearts #2) that deals with the supporting characters from this book and they seem much more interesting.
Let's dig in to the heroine - Katie. I'm sorry, but she was one of the DUMBEST girls I have ever read about. The thing is, she calls herself a nerd. She is a history teacher at a local high school. But she does not know what "chica" means or "Ay Dios mio". Maybe I'm too picky, but this "character trait" annoyed me throughout the book. I don't know about others, but I feel like those Spanish phrases are so obvious! Plus they were said in a context so she could kind of guess it, right? Katie is an example of a heroine that I hate with passion. Putting herself down with phrases like "I'm so plain." or acting like a precious virgin even though she is divorced is just insufferable. One sentence that really got me was this one: "She wanted someone to like her tits instead of her degree." Isn't this insulting to feminism? Then again, some might argue that she had full right to say that, if she wants to...So what do I know?
Marcos was slightly less annoying, though he is definitely not my kind of man that I would fall over for. Before one of the steamier scenes, he asked Katie: "Wanna fuck?" I'm not a prude, but this phrase was so out of place in this book I just cringed. Also whenever he said "thug", I wanted to throw my kindle against the wall. Horrible.
Supporting character, Chuito, who's Marcos cousin was almost the only positive thing about this book. He intrigued me and I could not wait to read his story! (I started it and it's SO much better than this! Can't believe it's from the same author.)
While the main characters were such a pain, the storyline itself was not much better. Midway through, I wondered what's the other half going to be about? I was very disappointed that it was very anti-climatic. It was just so so plain and boring, I congratulated myself that I managed to finish it. The steamier scenes saved the book a bit, it was pleasant, but definitely nothing revolutionary. Overall, I'm just glad that I've finished this and now I can move on to Chuito's story. I would only recommend this book so you could read the second.
Rating: 2 out of 5 (Barely, I was very generous.)
(*no spoilers*)
I had a lot of mixed emotions while reading this book. For me, the start was just very slow - first 30% did not give me anything that I liked. There's a lot of rambling from me in later paragraphs. To be honest, I only finished this book because of The Slayer (Untamed Hearts #2) that deals with the supporting characters from this book and they seem much more interesting.
Let's dig in to the heroine - Katie. I'm sorry, but she was one of the DUMBEST girls I have ever read about. The thing is, she calls herself a nerd. She is a history teacher at a local high school. But she does not know what "chica" means or "Ay Dios mio". Maybe I'm too picky, but this "character trait" annoyed me throughout the book. I don't know about others, but I feel like those Spanish phrases are so obvious! Plus they were said in a context so she could kind of guess it, right? Katie is an example of a heroine that I hate with passion. Putting herself down with phrases like "I'm so plain." or acting like a precious virgin even though she is divorced is just insufferable. One sentence that really got me was this one: "She wanted someone to like her tits instead of her degree." Isn't this insulting to feminism? Then again, some might argue that she had full right to say that, if she wants to...So what do I know?
Marcos was slightly less annoying, though he is definitely not my kind of man that I would fall over for. Before one of the steamier scenes, he asked Katie: "Wanna fuck?" I'm not a prude, but this phrase was so out of place in this book I just cringed. Also whenever he said "thug", I wanted to throw my kindle against the wall. Horrible.
Supporting character, Chuito, who's Marcos cousin was almost the only positive thing about this book. He intrigued me and I could not wait to read his story! (I started it and it's SO much better than this! Can't believe it's from the same author.)
While the main characters were such a pain, the storyline itself was not much better. Midway through, I wondered what's the other half going to be about? I was very disappointed that it was very anti-climatic. It was just so so plain and boring, I congratulated myself that I managed to finish it. The steamier scenes saved the book a bit, it was pleasant, but definitely nothing revolutionary. Overall, I'm just glad that I've finished this and now I can move on to Chuito's story. I would only recommend this book so you could read the second.
Rating: 2 out of 5 (Barely, I was very generous.)
scorchingnix's review
5.0
FTC: I got this book to review from the author for a fair and honest review. I adore this series.
The Battered Heart series was amazing. It was gritty, sexy and I was devastated when it finished. I knew that the saga wasn’t over (I hadn’t had Nova’s book for God’s sake) but I wasn’t expecting The Viper. Two unknown characters and one of them is a gang member? Sounded different to say the least. Not only did I love it but I have a new respect for Ms Moon’s work; she is a very, very intelligent lady. I know now I am not ready for Nova’s love story. I am not ready to see him as the hero I want for any heroine but, as she builds up the darkness with the bad-boys of this series, I think just maybe I’ll get there.
Katie is a woman in a rut. Her ex-husband still seems to think that he is part of her life, her job isn’t particularly fulfilling and her social life is non-existent. Then a road accident with the lovely Marcos changes her way of thinking and her life. She spends weeks and months searching for him but to no avail. When, without warning, he comes back into her life to ask her to stop trying to connect with him, she grabs on to what little time he can give her with both hands. He is unlike anyone she has ever let into her life before; can she let him back out again as easily when the time comes for him to leave?
I liked Katie. She wanted to change her life and, when she gets the opportunity, she latches on to it without fear of the consequences. Some people may have thought she was crazy for her actions (I’ll admit to being one of them) but on reading her scenes with Marcus, I couldn’t have been happier with her tenacity. She didn’t care what people thought, she didn’t care that he was probably going to break her heart and she certainly didn’t care what was in his past. She only cared about he treated her and how he made her feel. I couldn’t fault her for that and, even though there were times when I thought that she was taking too many risks, I loved that she was finally trying to find something in her life that made her feel good.
Marcos is a like the mini bad-boy of the series. Now, don’t get me wrong, being a convicted criminal with gang affiliations and a tendency to punch first and ask questions later, he’s obviously not a nice hero, but hear me out. There is a “story” as to why he is in a gang and it made me sniffle. He also wants out but just can’t seem, for various reasons, to actually do it. However, the real way I know that he is a mild bad-boy is the way that he treats everyone in this book. He isn’t a complete arsehole to them, he doesn’t threaten them with violence unless they deserve it and he doesn’t want to scam them out of all their money. He is genuinely an OK, if not prickly, guy. It’s the way that he is with Katie that made me swoon. He treats her like something precious yet equal. He never disrespects her, or treats her as anything less than what she is, whilst going out of his way to be the most chivalrous, dirty talking man ever to grace her bed. The chemistry between them simmered constantly throughout the book but it exploded with the sex scenes, some of them being the hottest I’ve read from this author to date.
This is a Kele Moon book so there will be danger and chaos on the path to true love. Marcos’s gang-mates are a constant source of tension for them and it seems that he will never be free of the ties that bind him to his life of crime. Will there be any way out of this impossible situation for these two? Well, I recommend you read it and find out! But read it in order (with the Battered Hearts books first) because you need to fall in love with this town before you meet the bad-boys of this series.
This book was fantastic in its own right. It’s dirty, gritty and, in complete contrast, often charming. I can’t help but feel that I’m being tenderised with this story though, that I’m being softened up to accept the romance of much more tortured men who’ve done much more dastardly deeds. I can’t wait to see where Kele Moon goes with Chiuto’s book next!
The Battered Heart series was amazing. It was gritty, sexy and I was devastated when it finished. I knew that the saga wasn’t over (I hadn’t had Nova’s book for God’s sake) but I wasn’t expecting The Viper. Two unknown characters and one of them is a gang member? Sounded different to say the least. Not only did I love it but I have a new respect for Ms Moon’s work; she is a very, very intelligent lady. I know now I am not ready for Nova’s love story. I am not ready to see him as the hero I want for any heroine but, as she builds up the darkness with the bad-boys of this series, I think just maybe I’ll get there.
Katie is a woman in a rut. Her ex-husband still seems to think that he is part of her life, her job isn’t particularly fulfilling and her social life is non-existent. Then a road accident with the lovely Marcos changes her way of thinking and her life. She spends weeks and months searching for him but to no avail. When, without warning, he comes back into her life to ask her to stop trying to connect with him, she grabs on to what little time he can give her with both hands. He is unlike anyone she has ever let into her life before; can she let him back out again as easily when the time comes for him to leave?
I liked Katie. She wanted to change her life and, when she gets the opportunity, she latches on to it without fear of the consequences. Some people may have thought she was crazy for her actions (I’ll admit to being one of them) but on reading her scenes with Marcus, I couldn’t have been happier with her tenacity. She didn’t care what people thought, she didn’t care that he was probably going to break her heart and she certainly didn’t care what was in his past. She only cared about he treated her and how he made her feel. I couldn’t fault her for that and, even though there were times when I thought that she was taking too many risks, I loved that she was finally trying to find something in her life that made her feel good.
Marcos is a like the mini bad-boy of the series. Now, don’t get me wrong, being a convicted criminal with gang affiliations and a tendency to punch first and ask questions later, he’s obviously not a nice hero, but hear me out. There is a “story” as to why he is in a gang and it made me sniffle. He also wants out but just can’t seem, for various reasons, to actually do it. However, the real way I know that he is a mild bad-boy is the way that he treats everyone in this book. He isn’t a complete arsehole to them, he doesn’t threaten them with violence unless they deserve it and he doesn’t want to scam them out of all their money. He is genuinely an OK, if not prickly, guy. It’s the way that he is with Katie that made me swoon. He treats her like something precious yet equal. He never disrespects her, or treats her as anything less than what she is, whilst going out of his way to be the most chivalrous, dirty talking man ever to grace her bed. The chemistry between them simmered constantly throughout the book but it exploded with the sex scenes, some of them being the hottest I’ve read from this author to date.
This is a Kele Moon book so there will be danger and chaos on the path to true love. Marcos’s gang-mates are a constant source of tension for them and it seems that he will never be free of the ties that bind him to his life of crime. Will there be any way out of this impossible situation for these two? Well, I recommend you read it and find out! But read it in order (with the Battered Hearts books first) because you need to fall in love with this town before you meet the bad-boys of this series.
This book was fantastic in its own right. It’s dirty, gritty and, in complete contrast, often charming. I can’t help but feel that I’m being tenderised with this story though, that I’m being softened up to accept the romance of much more tortured men who’ve done much more dastardly deeds. I can’t wait to see where Kele Moon goes with Chiuto’s book next!
gerireads's review
4.0
4 stars!
I've always loved Kele Moon's heroes. She writes them sexy, rough around the edges, and loyal to a fault. Marcos is all of those things and then some.
The Story
Marcos Rivera is a gang member and a fighter. Wanting to better his life, he went to Garnet only to be met with rejection. On his way to his old life, he collided (literally) with Katie Foster. She's a teacher, a divorce who wants to experience more than what life has offered her so far.
After that chance encounter both of them can't forget the other. While Marcos is trying to distance himself from the violence that had become his life, Katie is trying to get closer to Marcos and she will do anything to have her chance with him.
My Thoughts
The Viper is the first book off Kele Moon's Untamed Hearts series. As you all know, this series is a spin off of her Battered Hearts series. Marcos is Chuito's cousin, an MMA champion who trains with Romeo at the Cellar. A chance encounter with Katie made Carlos reevaluate his life choices but as much as he wants to change, old habits, old friends seems to hard to shake off.
I love the character of Marcos. He's cocky but sensitive. He might be a gang member but he has an inherent goodness in his heart and he has integrity. And he really wants to change. Part of this book deals with Marcos trying to extricate himself from the illegal activities of his gang. As much as he wants to, circumstances keep pulling him back in.
Katie, though not a favorite of mine among Kele's heroine, is a perfect foil for Marcos. She's sweet and sheltered. But she has a backbone and she knows how to stand up for herself. On her own, she was a little bland personality wise but once she's with Marcos and even Chuito, she becomes a lot more interesting. Her banter with Marcos and even with Chuito were great.
The romance with Marcos and Katie was sizzling. I usually have a problem with insta connection/lust/love in books but surprisingly, I didn't have a problem with it here. Because they Marcos and Katie did connect instantly, it took a substantial amount of time for them to finally come together. And once they did, it was explosive.
As much as I love the romance between Katie and Marcos, my favorite part in this book is Marcos and Chuito. They have been through so much together and you just feel the bond between them. Their loyalty and love for each other suffuses the pages of this book. One particular scene that had me bawling, which was strange because it wasn't particularly angsty or anything. But it was just emotionally heartrending to see both of them fight for each other.
When Chuito did what he had to do in order to give Marcos his freedom, that made me tear up because it was just so powerful. The reason why it touched me because in romance, I'm used to seeing the hero sacrifice something for the heroine, but it's not really common to see it happen between the hero and his best friend or brother or in this case, the cousin. Which also made me excited for Chuito's book because, man, I really don't know where Kele is going to take his story now after what happened in this book.
So overall, The Viper is a solid series starter. You'll get a glimpse not only of Chuito but Tino and Nova as well as Jules and Wyatt. As a final note, although this is a spin off of Battered Hearts Series, this book can be read as a standalone.
An ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I've always loved Kele Moon's heroes. She writes them sexy, rough around the edges, and loyal to a fault. Marcos is all of those things and then some.
The Story
Marcos Rivera is a gang member and a fighter. Wanting to better his life, he went to Garnet only to be met with rejection. On his way to his old life, he collided (literally) with Katie Foster. She's a teacher, a divorce who wants to experience more than what life has offered her so far.
After that chance encounter both of them can't forget the other. While Marcos is trying to distance himself from the violence that had become his life, Katie is trying to get closer to Marcos and she will do anything to have her chance with him.
My Thoughts
The Viper is the first book off Kele Moon's Untamed Hearts series. As you all know, this series is a spin off of her Battered Hearts series. Marcos is Chuito's cousin, an MMA champion who trains with Romeo at the Cellar. A chance encounter with Katie made Carlos reevaluate his life choices but as much as he wants to change, old habits, old friends seems to hard to shake off.
I love the character of Marcos. He's cocky but sensitive. He might be a gang member but he has an inherent goodness in his heart and he has integrity. And he really wants to change. Part of this book deals with Marcos trying to extricate himself from the illegal activities of his gang. As much as he wants to, circumstances keep pulling him back in.
Katie, though not a favorite of mine among Kele's heroine, is a perfect foil for Marcos. She's sweet and sheltered. But she has a backbone and she knows how to stand up for herself. On her own, she was a little bland personality wise but once she's with Marcos and even Chuito, she becomes a lot more interesting. Her banter with Marcos and even with Chuito were great.
The romance with Marcos and Katie was sizzling. I usually have a problem with insta connection/lust/love in books but surprisingly, I didn't have a problem with it here. Because they Marcos and Katie did connect instantly, it took a substantial amount of time for them to finally come together. And once they did, it was explosive.
As much as I love the romance between Katie and Marcos, my favorite part in this book is Marcos and Chuito. They have been through so much together and you just feel the bond between them. Their loyalty and love for each other suffuses the pages of this book. One particular scene that had me bawling, which was strange because it wasn't particularly angsty or anything. But it was just emotionally heartrending to see both of them fight for each other.
When Chuito did what he had to do in order to give Marcos his freedom, that made me tear up because it was just so powerful. The reason why it touched me because in romance, I'm used to seeing the hero sacrifice something for the heroine, but it's not really common to see it happen between the hero and his best friend or brother or in this case, the cousin. Which also made me excited for Chuito's book because, man, I really don't know where Kele is going to take his story now after what happened in this book.
So overall, The Viper is a solid series starter. You'll get a glimpse not only of Chuito but Tino and Nova as well as Jules and Wyatt. As a final note, although this is a spin off of Battered Hearts Series, this book can be read as a standalone.
An ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
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