Genre:
Romance/New Adult/Military
Description:
“Keegan
Crenshaw needs a hero. She's a straight-A student from a famous
Oklahoma family and the youngest-ever editor of her college
newspaper. She's got a lot to prove. But she's got enemies. Someone's
out to get her. Someone's got her running scared. And she runs right
into the arms of a red-hot boy named Blue.
Deep down,
Blue is still the brave soldier who risked his life for others in
Afghanistan. He's still a hero, even if he no longer believes it. All
he wants now, though, is to make music and bury the secret that could
destroy his future. Blue tries hard to be a good guy. But he's
wrestling with demons he can barely control. And when Keegan moves
into his house and very quickly into his heart, his hard-fought
control begins to slip away…”
Author:
“J.D.
Brick is a pen name… I am the author of the Ikana College
contemporary romance series. I’ve been a journalist, technical
writer and intrepid humorist, which is the only kind of humorist
worth being.
I’m crazy
for sweeping, ugly-cry tales of true love that are full of heat and
heartbreak. When I’m not writing or reading about swoon worthy book
boyfriends, I’m a wife, mother, corporate refugee, ever hopeful if
seldom successful gardener, and slave to great books and good coffee.
Or vice versa.”
Learn more
about J.D. Brick by visiting her website or following her on Facebook.
Appraisal:
Keegan
Crenshaw comes from a privileged background but really doesn’t see
herself as different from any other college student her age. She’s
been through some tough experiences but has fought hard to keep her
grades up. Her scholastic efforts have awarded her the coveted
position of head editor for the campus newspaper, The Daily, over an
equally qualified senior student. Recently though she has become the
target of a stalker who is sending threatening text messages, emails,
and recently a phone call. Keegan’s
hardline determination starts to waiver as the stress of the stalker
weighs heavier on her psyche. Desperate to hide, she moves out of the
dorm and into an off-campus party house known as The Canadian
Embassy. What was she thinking?
Blue
Danube, head resident of the
Embassy, is an ex-military upper-classman
studying music at Ikana College. Blue has a complicated history he
keeps hidden deep in his soul and suffers PTSD. The instant sparks
between Blue and Keegan come across as pure lust. I had trouble
buying into the love at first sight storyline, however I enjoyed
having both Keegan’s and Blue’s dual perspectives. It gives the
reader a sense of Keegan’s insecurities and naïveté as well as
Blue’s inner strengths and struggles. A few of the secondary
characters are also well developed and some are still in the process
of full disclosure. Personally, I would love to know more of Keegan’s
grandmother’s thoughts and feelings.
This
turned in to a much more complicated and twisted storyline than I was
expecting. There is a helluva cliffhanger at the end, which I guess I
overlooked in the blurb. If you are looking for a happily-ever-after
story you won’t find it in this book as it stands. Perhaps the
sequel will be able to deliver? It’s hard to say at this point.
FYI:
Tangled
Up in Blue is Book 1 in Ms.
Brick’s Ikana College
series. This book also contains adult language and mild adult sexual
situations that may be offensive to some readers.
Format/Typo
Issues:
I ran
across a small number of proofing errors during my reading.
Rating:
*** Three stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Print
Length: 259 pages
Approximate
word count: 85-90,000 words
