Title: Secrets & Lies
Author(s): Ella Frank & Brooke Blaine
Genre: Romance
Publisher: Amazon/Self
Heat: 3 Flames
Rating: 3.5 Hearts
Synopsis via Goodreads:
I wasn’t supposed to want him. The bronzed god lying by my pool in tight shorts that left little to the imagination. But I was only human, and with the temptation constantly within reach, it was only a matter of time before I could no longer resist.
It was wrong. I knew that.
He was my son’s age.
Hell, he was my son’s friend.But even worse…I was his teacher.
Review:
Ella Frank can always bring the heat, while Brooke Blaine usually delivers on the sweetness for me. This one is no exception. I thought we’d just have a quick May to December type romance and be on our way, but there was a lot more than that with this one.
I can’t seem to write much about this one without spoilers, nor can I figure out how to include spoiler tags in Wordpress. So, know that the following includes what could be considered spoilers.
I was not expecting the aftermath of when Ash met Ryder. I too thought he was in his twenties and found them hot together in the beginning. When Ryder walks into class the next day and sees Ash, it understandably throws us all for a loop. I certainly didn’t expect to see Ryder as a high school student as he is a rather precocious eighteen-year-old. He is very direct, knows what he wants, and isn’t afraid to go after it. I liked that about him.
At times, Ryder was a little much, too pushy at times, and Ash struggled quite a bit throughout the story. There were parts that I wish would’ve been different. I don’t like how Ryder doesn’t listen to Ash when he tries to stop things. It’s blurry and questionable in a couple places b/c Ryder eventually wears Ash down. Also, I felt the pacing was off in places, or how Ash left Ryder high and dry without so much as a text/goodbye for days when their week was interrupted after Sam came home early.
And I really wanted Ash to paint Ryder as he described him during that last night while lying nude in the moonlight.
I turned, placed a knee on the mattress and laid him out across it. He reached over his head, grabbed the other side of the bed, and pulled himself to the middle, and my breath caught at the sight. Naked and covered in slivers of moonlight, Ryder was the picture of sheer perfection.
[…]
“You are so incredibly beautiful,” I whispered, drinking in every part of him I could see. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you.”
That image just really stuck in my head for some reason. *shrugs* But overall, I enjoyed spending that week alone with them. It was one of my favorite parts of the story.
If you like age gap/teacher-student stories with a solid HEA, you may like this one.
I wish I had more to say, but it was a quick read for me and I’m still suffering from a book hangover after reading my first 5 star book in ages….
Purchase Link | Amazon
