Photo credits: Gerd Altmann, Radoan Tanvir (pixabay), thomas-stephan-1014183 (unsplash) Edited by Vaishali Title: Dirty Sexy Saint Series: Dirty Sexy #1 Author: Carly Phillips & Erika Wilde Publisher: Self Published Year of Publication: 2016 Format: E-book copy Genre/Themes: Adult Fiction, Contemporary romance, Erotic romance R E V I E W... There’s nothing less romantic than sussing out through thin walls that your current relationship is a product of a life that had been planned out for you. Or that your boyfriend’s interest in you has been an utterly perfunctory means to an end, all orchestrated by a dominant father with business on the mind. For Samantha, it’s either a choice between an arranged marriage, perpetuated upper-class airs and graces and a life deferring to the patriarchal pedigree of the Jamieson modus vivendi, or to use this opportunity to finally seal her independence. But that comes with the price of leaving splendour, security, privilege and instant wealth all at the doorstep of her family home. Samantha decides she can’t run fast enough. Wholly at odds with Samantha’s life, Clay Kincaid comes from a background of abuse and abandon. His childhood was the absence to Samantha’s abundance, defaced in ways she would never know. His penniless, underprivileged boyhood could have driven him to assume the behaviour of negligent role models, but he was the only thing that stood between his brothers and a life suffering more than they could handle. As it is, he did everything possible to break the pattern, and as such was dubbed ‘saint Clay’ because he does his utter best by those he loves as much for those he doesn’t know at all. These two poles-apart people are seized by the grasp of insta-lust when a very sober Clay finds a very drunken, homeless, money-less, loose-tongued Samantha in his bar, sampling his most shamelessly-named drinks. Before he knows it, he’s not just taking responsibility for the polished woman unsuited to his working-class environment, he’s employing her at his less-than upmarket establishment and keeping her up at his apartment. Because, as we know, saint Clay can’t quite turn a blind eye to someone in need. As is the usual however with a horrid background, Clay is the jaded, non-romantic, emotionally cut-off hero who doesn’t quite believe he’s worth more than his beginnings, even if his love interest strongly decides otherwise. Erika Wilde and Carly Phillips partner up to give us the Dirty Sexy series. I have twelve books in my Kindle library by Carly Phillips (of which I’ve read close to zero) and five books by Erika Wilde (of which I can declare I’ve actually read the colossal minimum of zero) - all down to my turtle-friendly, energy-limited reading pace, not an aversion to either creator. So while I don’t know the style or substance of Wilde’s particular writing predilections, I do know, from my very limited Phillips experience, that she likes her heroes alpha and dominant, her heroines credulous but independent, and a raging case of instant attraction buoyed by heaps of sexual attraction and heady smut. All of which was achieved with Dirty Sexy Saint too. Compared to my one and only read from Carly Phillips, I did enjoy this co-written piece. We’ve got the dirty-talking, dirty-minded alpha who keeps it crude and smutty in the bedroom and non-committal, understated but selfless outside of it. The best way I can describe Clay is precisely how the title does; a dirty, sexy saint but a gentle, gruff giant sits flush under the flesh albeit one who’s exceptionally suppressive, even as he tries to be for others what he’d wished had been within reach for himself growing up. We have a heroine entering the work force at 26, which becomes the start of many firsts for her. I loved the representation in this because the general consensus is to accept linear, age-appropriate, time-appropriate paths when it’s realistically true-to-life to say we come from different lifestyles and experience any variety of coming-of-age when the cards fall, so to speak. In that sense, it’s the beginning of a becoming for a lady who grew up flush to her neck in privilege. Samantha is wilful enough to want a lot more from life than settling for less than what she’s worth. A time to create a life away from the Jamieson name and away from the role of a well-worked, pliant daughter. She wants, or more appropriately, is uncompromisingly insistent on a life where every decision won’t be made for her. In other words, independence over tradition looks a much greener pasture. Even though she very quickly becomes an employee for Clay, I appreciated that Samantha didn’t become passive in the role of bar waitress for the sake of remaining with a man she was falling for. After talking a game of wanting her own independence, I was happy to see that once she had established he dream, she didn’t imperil that dream in a 'is it him or your dream' conflict. And just as luck (or an orchestrated plot) would have it, she gets a man who’s a different make, a different look and a different touch altogether. Clay isn’t upscale gracious or preeningly polite and she wants a dark alpha taste of a man who looks like a tall drink that could seamlessly fit into his beverage menu. As aforementioned, I did have fun have with this read, but it didn’t meet the mark of establishing a better, believably-built connection between our main couple. It also didn’t quite meet the title of a ‘great read’. The authors pepper this romance with radioactive levels of lust and desire, which wouldn’t have been an issue with me had the emotional connection risen to the challenge. But in the author’s defense, the premise does boast an erotic scene that dares to entice with sin and seduction - achieved, but if a narrative also aims to include some nuance of emotional intimacy, the expectation is for it to be felt, even if not developed in its entirety. The authors did make an effort at a deeper connection but (as a personal opinion) it was without success. As an erotic romance, I anticipated a fine spread of impropriety, burrowing bedroom eyes and bustling bedroom indecency - full marks to the authors for supplying the heat levels, but the level or style of risque wasn’t unlike anything I’ve ever read before either. I adore instant chemistry. In fact, I love a steamy meet-cute, but I also struggle with immediate chemistry, because when it’s expedited, the result is often a partnership that feels more feigned than it does real. The heroine had decided that she was in it for keeps after only a few days, and the hero could only exercise his vulnerability with dominant bedroom displays. If the time was taken to level out their connection rather than speed-walking its way through, I definitely would have enjoyed it more. The sexual tension was a livewire but the emotional connection was harder to chase. I was interested but I wasn’t quite emotionally pulled in...but the question I'm pondering is, did i need to be? There’s nothing particularly unlikeable about this story, but again, it isn’t unlike anything I’ve read before. I'm one of those readers that isn't cliché-averse but I found myself traversing the same fundamental clichés that host what felt like a pseudo-relationship as opposed to authenticating a bona fide love link. Bizarre as this might sound the clichés in this book were a bit too cliché for me. I did however enjoy the interaction between Clay and Samantha, whether it be light and seemingly trivial or just tuning into their chemistry. Normally I’m not a fan of the heroine who assumes the persisting role of ‘the chaser’ to the hero’s ‘the chased’, it's a power balance that plays to one MC's favour by granting them the role of ascendancy, but neither does the heroine push too hard, and despite the hero fighting his own feelings the whole way through as we wait for him to come to that realisation, Samantha again doesn’t lay it on uncomfortably thick. The author makes it clear that both the hero and heroine care strongly for the other, even if those thoughts are shuttered behind mindful doors, away from each other and perhaps even themselves. The depth of character wasn't quite there for me however. While I say that, it is quite amusing to watch Clay resist, even thought it’s clear that, while he’d hide like a squirrel rather than face the incoming bait of seductive Samantha, every man has his wilting point. Denial is a well-preferred flavour and dominance is the unadorned language of non-love behind bedroom doors for Clay. While Clay grew up with nothing, his recent hire grew up with everything but the rough-around-the-edges guy gets the cream and the gourmet cupcake in this co-authored romance. I confess with open verity that a fine spread of smut was my quasi-pursuit but if your endgame is semi-synonymous with my own, you’ll enjoy this fish-out-of-water, riches-to-rags romance where a gruff Samaritan pushed past adversity for a second life, matched with a privileged-to-poor woman who’s now desperate to land a life of her own. I gave this book 3 stars - P O T E N T I A L C O N T E N T W A R N I N G: Mentions drug possession, smoking, human trafficking, prostitution and child abuse/neglect. Very descriptive sex scenes and profanity. --------------------------------------- M Y R A T I N G S Y S T E M: ★ - 1 star: I did not like the book ★★ - 2 stars: The book was okay ★★★ - 3 stars: It was a good, solid read ★★★★ - 4 stars: A great book ★★★★★ - 5: A phenomenal read --------------------------------------- E X T R A T H O U G H T S 1) This story is told in dual POV, which was nice to get back into. While the POVs are generally easy to tell apart, there was one scene, near the end, post-primitive fornication, after Clay finally opens up about his past, where his POV slides into Samantha’s. Just wanted to point out that it can be really confusing when perspectives change without notice. 2) The authors build up a picture and an interest for the other two Kincaid brothers. I have to say though, I’m so glad I got Clay’s story because I honestly don’t know if I could have handled the womaniser that is Mason Kincaid. I really feel sorry for Katrina because I have no idea how she’ll tame their nymphomanic middle brother. I know most readers will love this though, but I personally struggle with the ‘girl sitting on the sidelines waiting for the guy to notice her’ trope. 3) I think establishing a reason for a couple to break up only really works when they have something more solid to play with, which makes that conflict feel more legitimised because that ‘thing’ tests the mettle of what has been built, fragile or otherwise. Much as Samantha and Clay were smitten (without obvious displays) they didn’t communicate the important things very well, and the uncertainty about where they stood always felt like ‘that thing never discussed’. 4) Clay was on to something when he says that Samantha’s too naive and too trusting, and I have to admit that, sheltered or not, intoxicated or not, it was a bit bizarre of her to lunge at him as she has a breakdown, not just thinking but believing he’ll take care of her. I think that took the naivete a tad far when most everybody has an instinct to protect themselves in foreign company. Just my humble thoughts. 5) Also, in Clay's POV, he wears out the term ‘crack wh***’ a lot. I love interacting with fellow readers, reviewers, bloggers and writers. Hearing about reader opinion is the fuel to my reader appetite, so get in touch and comment below! SHARE ON FACEBOOK L E A V E A C O M M E N T A N D L E T' S T A L K A B O U T |
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February 2024
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