Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: Rome by Jay Crownover


I LOVE this series and I am so excited to be a part of the Rome tour and share my review and an amazing tour giveaway.
Rome
(Marked Men #3)
Author: Jay Crownover
Publisher: William Morrow
Publication Date: January 7, 2014
Genre: New Adult/Contemporary
Event Organized by: Literati Author Services, Inc.
Source: eARC from Publisher via Edelweiss

~Synopsis~
Sometimes the wrong choice can be just right . . .

Fun and fearless, Cora Lewis knows how to keep her tattooed "bad boy" friends at the Marked in line. But beneath all that flash and sass is a broken heart. Cora won't let herself get burned again. She's waiting to fall in love with the perfect man—a baggage-free, drama-free guy ready for commitment. Then she meets Rome Archer.

Rome Archer is as far from perfect as a man can be. He's stubborn, rigid, and bossy. And he's returned from his final tour of duty more than a little broken. Rome's used to filling many roles: big brother, doting son, supersoldier—but none of those fit anymore. Now he's just a man trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life while keeping the dark demons of war and loss at bay. He would have been glad to suffer through it alone, until Cora comes sweeping into his life and becomes a blinding flash of color in a sea of gray.Perfect may not be in the cards, but perfectly imperfect could just last forever . . 


~Review~

Freaking Rome Archer. I have to tell you, I absolutely love these Marked Men. I wish I was the woman lucky enough to have one of these guys fall in love with me. They can be a bit rough around the edges but they are fiercely protective of their women and they love hard. Rome is no exception and while I might love his brother, Rule, just a little more, I'm still totally HOT for this guy.

Rome is a soldier and that is all he's known or been for the past 10 years. His military career is over due to injury and he feels lost and out of place. He doesn't know who he is now or what to do with the rest of his life. On top of that, he's still reeling from the fallout with his family regarding his deceased brother, Remy, and the secrets he kept before he died. He's turned to alcohol to drown his sorrows and it's definitely been bringing the worst out in him. He was always close with Rule and Shaw but he's pushing buttons and he and Rule are on the outs for the first time in his life. However, there's one person not putting up with Rome's crap and not afraid to tell him off and that's Cora.

Cora is a really awesome chick and I've liked her since she was first introduced in Rule. She is totally bad ass, with awesome tattoos and a totally kick ass attitude. Despite what people may think from her appearance, she is smart and tough and loyal. She has been really hurt in the past and that has definitely played a huge role in her love life. She's holding out for Mr. Perfect and won't settle for anything less. Her ex obliterated her and she never wants to experience that kind of heart break again. She is instantly attracted and intrigued by Rome but he is far from her idea of perfect. The more she gets to know him the more she realizes he may not be her idea of perfect but he may be just perfect for her.

When I first read Rule, one of my pet peeves was that it was too predictable. However, as I read this series, I've come to realize that is how Jay writes. These aren't meant to be mysteries or to shock and awe you. This series is all about the couples and the experiences they share together. The plot is there and yeah it's interesting and a bit intriguing but it's really secondary to the relationship that develops between Rome and Cora. It doesn't matter if you can see what's coming a mile away in the plot because what's really going to surprise you is reaction that the characters have to each other when their thrown into these situations. Both Rome and Cora have a lot of baggage and neither of them expected to fall for one another the way they did. Cora is definitely not Rome's normal type but he can help but want to get to know her and he is drawn to her because she is different than any woman he has ever known.

They definitely have chemistry and the sexy times between them was intense and extremely hot. I liked how open and honest Rome is with Cora and how vulnerable he lets himself be. She doesn't quite reciprocate and she has a much harder time fully letting him into her heart. I know she loved him and she was pretty good at trying to show it but sometimes you just need to hear the words and Cora struggled with that. However, sometimes it takes a scary situation to show you how you feel and Cora voiced her feelings for Rome when it really counted. Cora and Rome go through a lot of things in this book and their lives are definitely changed by the experiences. They both learn a lot about themselves and I think they have each other to thank for that.

While we get more of Rule, Shaw, Ayden and Jet, which is of course a treat, I loved the addition of Bryant and Asa. I also loved that Nash's story started to develop out of this book as well. We get some insight into what will be thrown his way and I am super excited for his story. Bryant is the owner of a bar Rome stumbles into and as a former Vet himself, he takes Rome under his wing. I really liked Bryant and I think he definitely plays a huge role in Rome's recovery. We also get to see a lot more of Asa and I really like him too. He messed up but it's obvious that he wants to be a better person and it is hard on him when Ayden doesn't see that he's trying to change. He's getting his own story one of these days and I look forward to it as well.

Seriously, I can't say enough about how much I really love this series and the addition of Rome and Cora to the story. I love the way each book is the love story of two of the characters but they all flow together and they flow together really well. I am also hugely impressed with how well Jay's writing has progressed too. She is definitely a talented writer and her writing and plot development gets better with each book. I simply can't wait for more!

~IPOD Picks~
“It Is What It Is” by Lifehouse
“Better in Time” by Leona Lewis
“Never Gonna Be Alone” by Nickelback




Purchase Links:

About the Author
I’m supposed to share interesting details about myself so that my readers get to know me so here we go in no particular order: I’m an natural redhead even though I haven’t seen my real hair color in years, I’m a big fan of tattoos and have a half sleeve on either arm and various other pieces all over the place, I’ve been in the bar industry since I was in college and it has always offered interesting insight into how men and women interact with each other, I have 3 dogs that are all crazy, I live in Colorado and love the snow, I love music and in all reality wish I could be a rock star not a writer or a bartender but I have zero talent so there is that. I love to write, love to read and all I’m interested in is a good story with interesting characters that make the reader feel something.

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4 comments:

  1. I have been seeing this book all over the place lately and damn it really makes me want to start this series. I honestly never gave it much thought before, but you obviously seem to adore it and a rec from you has yet to disappoint. Great review!

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  2. I had to skim over your review for now because I have to read these. This is the second 5 star review of utmost trusted bloggers and this means I need to start the series. I have to get through these others!

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  3. I love this series! I definitely recommend it, especially for those that love NA. It is a little different and I love the guys1

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  4. You definitely need to start it. I can't wait for you to meet Rule! He is probably my favorite so far! In fact, I want to re-read his book soon :-)

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