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A review by chalila
Thief by C.L. Stone, C.L. Stone
Did not finish book.
So this review is gonna be long because it contains quite a lot of quotes.
It started out so good. Interesting story, intriguing plot and diverse characters. But then I got beyond the first 15%.
Kayli is so infuriatingly annoying and extremely childish. She’s had a tough life, I get it. She’s starved for attention and affection. But does she have to flirt and cling to all the guys in this story? I liked the story in the beginning, and I didn’t start to dislike Kayli until she was starting to get to know the guys.
First out was Corey. She pegged him for a nerdling at first sight. She later became aware that he is so adorable, cute and nice that it is impossible to be mad at him – “I couldn’t argue with that face. How did he do that?”
He’s not very forward, and so their flirting is subtle, but it’s there.
“I took is hand, letting him help me stand up. After, he squeezed it gently once and released me. The move was odd to me, mostly odd because I actually felt a warmth from him I wasn’t expecting. He wasn’t just friendly. There was something about him that I was drawn to.”
“I jogged over until I was standing beside him, allowing myself, for the moment, to get swept away.”
“He shrugged, reaching for my hand, tugging once to get me to hurry along. He let go after, and I was sorry for it.”
Then we have Raven. Kayli likes to hit him. She secretly likes that he hits back, although she complains about it every time he does.
“I slapped his bicep, right on a tribal tattoo.”
“I squared off my shoulders at him, holding up my fists and ready to hit him in the chest or face or wherever I could reach.”
“I punched at one of the tribal tattoos on his shoulder.”
“I kicked backward, finding his shin.”
“I swung around, catching him in the arm with a fist.”
“I pouted and swung a fake punch with my free hand at his knee.”
It never stops!
On to the flirting:
“His chest moved as he breathed heavily, in and out, brushing against me. A reaction stirred in my nipples and I tried to ignore it.”
This one is totally forgivable in my eyes though, since this is basically just her body reacting. She isn’t consciously doing anything.
“His head leaned in, his lips traced my ear. His nose shifted through my hair. “Is it? Are you sure?”
I shivered warmly. He was so close and at the same time, I sensed him toying with me. It almost scared me how much it turned me on.”
Now this is border lining.
“Raven’s muscled, tattooed shoulders and attitude set something off inside me. I would never admit it in a million years, but I wanted to pummel him for making me feel like I wanted to kiss the tar out of him.” Aaand now it’s too much. If it was just him who caused this reaction, then sure. But she reacts this way to most of them! It drove me crazy.
Take her first “meeting” with Axel, for example. He comes into the room. Stark naked. With morning wood.
“He studied me just as much as I studied him. His eyes swept over me in the shorts, the boots, the way my hair hung around my cheeks and down my shoulders to almost chest length. His eyes stayed at my chest and hips for so long that I felt a swell in my breasts and genitals and the warm wave of a blush as if I’d been the one naked instead of him.”
“And why did his nonchalant attitude make me feel all weak in the knees?”
“I relented, letting him take my wrist. His thumb trailed over the underside, right above my palm, in a reassuring motion. If my heart could quiver and then stop and relax at the same time, that’s exactly how he made me feel.
…
With that, he lowered our joined hands into the coolness of the water in the seemingly empty tank. A shiver went through my spine, but it wasn’t totally from the chill of the water.
…
My heart raced, mostly from the touch of his fingertips smoothing over my skin. It became difficult to remember what he wanted to know.
…
His fingers lowered along my spine, sending a gentle ripple through my body.”
It also got tiring how freaking nice everyone was to her and how she couldn’t believe it. The following quotes are all from the same chapter and occurs over only a few pages:
“But,” I said, unsure how to put it. “I mean, I haven’t even done anything for you yet. Why would you?”
…
I cupped his cheek in my palm, drawing his head over until I could plant a kiss on the opposite cheek. “Please, please, please?” I begged. I don’t know why I was still asking. I think I just wanted to play. I was so excited, and I didn’t know how to say thank you for this.
“I said yes.”
“Please?”
….
If it meant swallowing my pride so Corey could do me a favor, I’d do it. If I had to sink deeper into this strange group to get it to happen, I’d do it.” What freaking pride does she have to swallow? He is offering to do something for her, something she wants very much – for nothing at all in return!
This is all happening while she is sitting on his lap in a chair. Raven comes up and mocks her pleading and the three of the end up sprawling on the floor:
“Corey chuckled underneath me. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I said.
He dropped a hand on top of my head. “Don’t hit me,” he said. “I’m just trying to…” He wriggled underneath me, and held on to my arm a bit, as if trying to make sure I was okay.
“I won’t hit you,” I said. I tried to push myself up off of his chest but Raven sunk his full weight onto my body, crushing me against Corey. “Ugh. You jerk, get off of me.” I reached around, slapping at Raven’s arm.
Raven shifted above me, and a hard spank landed on my thigh close to my butt. “Girl, I swear…”
I whimpered, rubbing at the spot where he hit me. It didn’t really hurt that bad, I was going to pout and then pop him back when his guard was down.”
When Marc comes into the room and finds them laying there, her reaction is:
“Raven did it!”
Oh, and she can tell the twins apart because of their eyes. Brandon has a deep sadness in his, and apparently she is the only one who can see it. Not his twin, he seemed completely clueless to the fact that their eyes were different. Not his friends. No, it’s only the girl he met mere 24 hours before who can see it. Except for Brandon himself, of course. When she said that their eyes were different he "stared at her in a strange way that made her insides squirm."
“He grunted and suddenly his arms encircled me. He swayed gently with the music. He was pretending to dance with me. That didn’t matter to me as much, but his strong arms across my shoulders were suddenly everything I needed.”
And then, during her mission… *drumroll* She starts her own little investigation and starts flirting with the target.
“Mr. Coaltar turned.
The world shifted.
*Description of his handsomeness*
And, god forgive me, I paused a millisecond to admire the view.
…
His hand went out, and caught the strap of my dress that I hadn’t noticed had slid off my shoulder. His fingers grazed my skin as he adjusted the strap back into place. His touch sent my heart into a dizzying spin.
…
My breathing quickened and my heart raced. The golden flecks in his eyes were distracting. His touch and invitation were clouding my judgment. Temptation swept over me, intimidating and precise.
He was testing me, I knew. He wanted to see if I was willing to play his game. Something about him made me want to step up to this shrewd challenge he was putting across to me. I wanted to figure out how far he would take this.
…
I lowered my eyes prettily, hoping to appear modest. Not usually my style, but this game was fun, albeit dangerous. And maybe that was the exciting part.
…
I couldn’t resist this game. I started it, I suppose. Maybe it was masochistic of me to find enjoyment in flirting with danger in this way.
…
Maybe even Mr. Coaltar would hire me.
Or date me.
You get the picture?
“I didn’t really care about this fake job offer with Mr. Coaltar but it was irritating that Brandon thought he could tell me what to do. I wanted to push a few of his buttons and get him to back off.”
So damn childish.
And for everyone who comments on how smart she is all the time – she is really clueless.
“It was Corey who grabbed my hand, odd to me because we didn’t have to pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend any more. Did he forget?”
She also knows no boundaries. She meddles in things that are none of her business. She knows it too, but her reasoning is that “she was doing him a favor”.
And after all this flirting with all these guys in one day she ends up in Marc’s bed. It was mostly platonic, except for two kisses. One of which she initiated while she was “acting” in front of one of his exes to get her to stop chasing after him.
“My heart fluttered in ways I hadn’t felt in a while *excuse me for cutting in for just a second… Really? I seem to recall she stated something similar a couple of hours before with Mr. Coaltar. Forget about him already?*, and so strongly that it scared me. I pulled back, trying to maintain my ruse and at the same time hide the sudden attraction I felt for him that had become overwhelming.”
When he comes in for a second one she acts confused as to why he would kiss her.
“I had kissed him to save him some trouble. What was his about? Some weird way of getting back at me?” I mean, Jesus. This is getting embarrassing.
At 39% I decide to check out a few reviews on GR. What I find isn’t particularly surprising, and Margarita Cubian’s 1-star review basically says exactly what I’m thinking. I read her entire review and decided not to finish the book. It started out so good, and I really wanted to like it. Why this book has so many 5-star reviews on amazon is beyond me.
It started out so good. Interesting story, intriguing plot and diverse characters. But then I got beyond the first 15%.
Kayli is so infuriatingly annoying and extremely childish. She’s had a tough life, I get it. She’s starved for attention and affection. But does she have to flirt and cling to all the guys in this story? I liked the story in the beginning, and I didn’t start to dislike Kayli until she was starting to get to know the guys.
First out was Corey. She pegged him for a nerdling at first sight. She later became aware that he is so adorable, cute and nice that it is impossible to be mad at him – “I couldn’t argue with that face. How did he do that?”
He’s not very forward, and so their flirting is subtle, but it’s there.
“I took is hand, letting him help me stand up. After, he squeezed it gently once and released me. The move was odd to me, mostly odd because I actually felt a warmth from him I wasn’t expecting. He wasn’t just friendly. There was something about him that I was drawn to.”
“I jogged over until I was standing beside him, allowing myself, for the moment, to get swept away.”
“He shrugged, reaching for my hand, tugging once to get me to hurry along. He let go after, and I was sorry for it.”
Then we have Raven. Kayli likes to hit him. She secretly likes that he hits back, although she complains about it every time he does.
“I slapped his bicep, right on a tribal tattoo.”
“I squared off my shoulders at him, holding up my fists and ready to hit him in the chest or face or wherever I could reach.”
“I punched at one of the tribal tattoos on his shoulder.”
“I kicked backward, finding his shin.”
“I swung around, catching him in the arm with a fist.”
“I pouted and swung a fake punch with my free hand at his knee.”
It never stops!
On to the flirting:
“His chest moved as he breathed heavily, in and out, brushing against me. A reaction stirred in my nipples and I tried to ignore it.”
This one is totally forgivable in my eyes though, since this is basically just her body reacting. She isn’t consciously doing anything.
“His head leaned in, his lips traced my ear. His nose shifted through my hair. “Is it? Are you sure?”
I shivered warmly. He was so close and at the same time, I sensed him toying with me. It almost scared me how much it turned me on.”
Now this is border lining.
“Raven’s muscled, tattooed shoulders and attitude set something off inside me. I would never admit it in a million years, but I wanted to pummel him for making me feel like I wanted to kiss the tar out of him.” Aaand now it’s too much. If it was just him who caused this reaction, then sure. But she reacts this way to most of them! It drove me crazy.
Take her first “meeting” with Axel, for example. He comes into the room. Stark naked. With morning wood.
“He studied me just as much as I studied him. His eyes swept over me in the shorts, the boots, the way my hair hung around my cheeks and down my shoulders to almost chest length. His eyes stayed at my chest and hips for so long that I felt a swell in my breasts and genitals and the warm wave of a blush as if I’d been the one naked instead of him.”
“And why did his nonchalant attitude make me feel all weak in the knees?”
“I relented, letting him take my wrist. His thumb trailed over the underside, right above my palm, in a reassuring motion. If my heart could quiver and then stop and relax at the same time, that’s exactly how he made me feel.
…
With that, he lowered our joined hands into the coolness of the water in the seemingly empty tank. A shiver went through my spine, but it wasn’t totally from the chill of the water.
…
My heart raced, mostly from the touch of his fingertips smoothing over my skin. It became difficult to remember what he wanted to know.
…
His fingers lowered along my spine, sending a gentle ripple through my body.”
It also got tiring how freaking nice everyone was to her and how she couldn’t believe it. The following quotes are all from the same chapter and occurs over only a few pages:
“But,” I said, unsure how to put it. “I mean, I haven’t even done anything for you yet. Why would you?”
…
I cupped his cheek in my palm, drawing his head over until I could plant a kiss on the opposite cheek. “Please, please, please?” I begged. I don’t know why I was still asking. I think I just wanted to play. I was so excited, and I didn’t know how to say thank you for this.
“I said yes.”
“Please?”
….
If it meant swallowing my pride so Corey could do me a favor, I’d do it. If I had to sink deeper into this strange group to get it to happen, I’d do it.” What freaking pride does she have to swallow? He is offering to do something for her, something she wants very much – for nothing at all in return!
This is all happening while she is sitting on his lap in a chair. Raven comes up and mocks her pleading and the three of the end up sprawling on the floor:
“Corey chuckled underneath me. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I said.
He dropped a hand on top of my head. “Don’t hit me,” he said. “I’m just trying to…” He wriggled underneath me, and held on to my arm a bit, as if trying to make sure I was okay.
“I won’t hit you,” I said. I tried to push myself up off of his chest but Raven sunk his full weight onto my body, crushing me against Corey. “Ugh. You jerk, get off of me.” I reached around, slapping at Raven’s arm.
Raven shifted above me, and a hard spank landed on my thigh close to my butt. “Girl, I swear…”
I whimpered, rubbing at the spot where he hit me. It didn’t really hurt that bad, I was going to pout and then pop him back when his guard was down.”
When Marc comes into the room and finds them laying there, her reaction is:
“Raven did it!”
Oh, and she can tell the twins apart because of their eyes. Brandon has a deep sadness in his, and apparently she is the only one who can see it. Not his twin, he seemed completely clueless to the fact that their eyes were different. Not his friends. No, it’s only the girl he met mere 24 hours before who can see it. Except for Brandon himself, of course. When she said that their eyes were different he "stared at her in a strange way that made her insides squirm."
“He grunted and suddenly his arms encircled me. He swayed gently with the music. He was pretending to dance with me. That didn’t matter to me as much, but his strong arms across my shoulders were suddenly everything I needed.”
And then, during her mission… *drumroll* She starts her own little investigation and starts flirting with the target.
“Mr. Coaltar turned.
The world shifted.
*Description of his handsomeness*
And, god forgive me, I paused a millisecond to admire the view.
…
His hand went out, and caught the strap of my dress that I hadn’t noticed had slid off my shoulder. His fingers grazed my skin as he adjusted the strap back into place. His touch sent my heart into a dizzying spin.
…
My breathing quickened and my heart raced. The golden flecks in his eyes were distracting. His touch and invitation were clouding my judgment. Temptation swept over me, intimidating and precise.
He was testing me, I knew. He wanted to see if I was willing to play his game. Something about him made me want to step up to this shrewd challenge he was putting across to me. I wanted to figure out how far he would take this.
…
I lowered my eyes prettily, hoping to appear modest. Not usually my style, but this game was fun, albeit dangerous. And maybe that was the exciting part.
…
I couldn’t resist this game. I started it, I suppose. Maybe it was masochistic of me to find enjoyment in flirting with danger in this way.
…
Maybe even Mr. Coaltar would hire me.
Or date me.
You get the picture?
“I didn’t really care about this fake job offer with Mr. Coaltar but it was irritating that Brandon thought he could tell me what to do. I wanted to push a few of his buttons and get him to back off.”
So damn childish.
And for everyone who comments on how smart she is all the time – she is really clueless.
“It was Corey who grabbed my hand, odd to me because we didn’t have to pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend any more. Did he forget?”
She also knows no boundaries. She meddles in things that are none of her business. She knows it too, but her reasoning is that “she was doing him a favor”.
And after all this flirting with all these guys in one day she ends up in Marc’s bed. It was mostly platonic, except for two kisses. One of which she initiated while she was “acting” in front of one of his exes to get her to stop chasing after him.
“My heart fluttered in ways I hadn’t felt in a while *excuse me for cutting in for just a second… Really? I seem to recall she stated something similar a couple of hours before with Mr. Coaltar. Forget about him already?*, and so strongly that it scared me. I pulled back, trying to maintain my ruse and at the same time hide the sudden attraction I felt for him that had become overwhelming.”
When he comes in for a second one she acts confused as to why he would kiss her.
“I had kissed him to save him some trouble. What was his about? Some weird way of getting back at me?” I mean, Jesus. This is getting embarrassing.
At 39% I decide to check out a few reviews on GR. What I find isn’t particularly surprising, and Margarita Cubian’s 1-star review basically says exactly what I’m thinking. I read her entire review and decided not to finish the book. It started out so good, and I really wanted to like it. Why this book has so many 5-star reviews on amazon is beyond me.