Trust Your Instincts
Rowan Harper is nothing but a smart-mouthed bookstore clerk with a crappy love life on the night she walks into Rosie’s Bar. Most of the drama in her life is borrowed from her best friend’s adventures. But when she meets Gabriel–tall and movie star gorgeous–everything changes. Never mind that she turns down the drink he offers, or that he brims with secrets she can’t begin to guess at. He ignites a desire in her she never suspected–and shows a fascination with her she can’t explain.
He has no family, no job, no bank account;he knows where she lives and her favorite flower. An aura of mystery cloaks him, even as Rowan grasps for facts, even as she fears an answer that could destroy her happiness. Gabriel can guide her through a wonderland of new sensations. But only if Rowan trusts him enough to follow. . .
Can you say book hangover? That’s exactly what I have right now after reading this book. After finishing another book at 4 a.m. today, I decided to start this book with every intention of reading just a few pages before bed. Two hours later I made myself go to bed. I was able to finish it this evening. I could not put it down. I received this book from Net Galley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Rowan is a single bookstore clerk, whose idea of a fun Friday night is watching re-runs of CSI. Her best friend, Laycee, calls her to come meet her at a dive bar since she had been left there by her boyfriend. While there, the best looking guy in the place is watching Rowan and not her knockout best friend. New experience for Rowan and she refuses the drink he sends to her table. When she goes to leave, she runs smack into the guy and he manages to convince her to meet him the next night. Thus starts a wonderful courtship between the two. What she doesn’t know is that Gabriel is a vampire. Due to the name of the book, the reader is in on the secret from the start.
What I liked about this book:
I loved the main characters of Rowan and Gabriel. Rowan has finally found the man she has been waiting for her whole life and Gabriel has found Rowan. The question here seems to be, has he met her before? Rowan has a lot of deja vu moments. And she has even more questions. Why doesn’t he ever stay the whole night, why is there a voice in her head at times, why does Gabriel answer questions that she only thinks and doesn’t ask out loud? It’s told from Rowan’s point of view and that was pretty funny at times. Certain phrases like “I crossed over from Clueless Land into the Continent of the Totally Lost”were used and kept the story lighter at times when it should have been horrific. That’s just one that jumped out at me.
The romance was ridiculously good. The lust on Rowan’s part especially,was off the charts. And no they don’t immediately fall into bed, and it actually takes awhile. Refreshing for a book of this type, I thought.
Over and above the romance, I really enjoyed Rowans relationship with her best friend Laycee. Although Laycee is described as looking like gorgeous trailer park trash, she’s the best friend everyone wants, although Laycee has a married (separated) boyfriend and that was a whole other part of the story.
At first I was thinking this story was kind of a Twilight for adults, if that makes sense. I am a big Twilight fan(don’t judge!) so this is not a disparaging comment. Young woman meets gorgeous vampire and they fall in love. Pretty simple. Not even close. And no he doesn’t glitter in the sun! Actually now that I think of it, he might glitter because he is never in the book unless it is at night. The fact that at 39% of the way in, I was wondering if there were other books out by this author is really telling. I was enjoying the read that much. That was a first for me to start wanting other books by the author before I was even done with the first book. And by the way, this was a first novel by this author which is just really surprising. If she can write this well on her first try, I can just imagine how she will be writing a few years down the road.
What didn’t I like about this book:
The only thing that comes to mind is the cover. The description of Gabriel just doesn’t fit the cover at all. In fact, if the blurb hadn’t drawn me in, I might not have even tried the book.
Who would I recommend this book to:
Any paranormal romance fan will love this book-I can almost guarantee it!
So now the wait begins for the second book in the series. I might have to start stalking the author to find out when that’s going to happen!
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