Laura’s Review of Dared (Boneyard Bad Boy Series, #1) by Kristina Borden

Synopsis

Damien:
I am Damien Cole. Manager of Dallas’ Top Tattoo Shop “The Boneyard.”
I play the game by my own set of rules. I discard women left and right.
Their only purpose is to cater to my sexual appetite. No woman will ever
tame my bad boy ways. I am at the top of my game.

Summer:

I am Summer Montgomery. My face has graced magazine covers all across the world. My looks will deceive you. I am a bad girl with a smart ass mouth and the attitude to back it up. Playing with me is like playing with fire. I will consume
you and swallow you whole.

When faced with temptation, which of these two badasses will fall first? 

What I Loved

          I really liked the plot of this book, it was original enough that it caught my attention and I’m a huge fan of second chance romances.  I loved that Damien and Summer not only once loved each other but that they were best friends too, and that throughout their childhood it was Summer sticking up for Damien not the other way around. 

          I love strong female characters that don’t take shit from no body and Summer fits that bill one hundred percent.  She stands up for herself when she needs to and kicks ass! Right away you know exactly what type of girl Summer is and although she changes and matures as the story goes on she holds true to who she really is.  She’s confident and has her shit together, she’s not some shy inexperienced girl who needs to be saved. Usually Summer is the one doing the saving!

        

        The chemistry between Summer and Damien comes roaring to life the minute Damien and Summer see each other after so many years apart and I couldn’t wait to for them to rip each other’s clothes off.  I loved the constant back and forth between the two of them because it just built the sexual tension up more and more, making this story very enjoyable.  When they finally come together it was awesome and it was great to see these two fall in love.  I loved that Summer knew what she wanted with Damien and was ready to jump in and make a life with him, it just proved she’s the type of lady who knows what she wants and goes after it. 

 

Not So Much

          I really loved the plot and the characters as well, Summer is one strong female and I absolutely worship her! Saying that, from the beginning the story felt robotic and the flow was broken at times.  A lot of the sentences were fragmented or I would see several sentences in a row that would begin with the same word.  When that happens it comes off too structured and not natural feeling, making it harder to get emotionally involved with the plot.  If the sentences were strung together rather than separate or there were more transitions the flow would’ve been a lot smoother making the story feel more real.

          Also there was so much detail in this book, which I loved because so many times authors gloss over important things that Dared had plenty of.  But there were times when there was too much of that and not enough action or conversation.  There were entire pages that would consist of just paragraphs of thoughts and details but not enough of that the character was doing or saying.  It’s a balance that’s hard to achieve and I get that, but for me to really picture what is going on and net get too bogged down in a character’s thoughts there needs to be more conversations or a break up of all the introspections.

       

       Another thing that kind of bothered me was the ending because it just became too unbelievable for me.  I get that this is fiction and none of this real so why complain that it’s not realistic because it’s not supposed to be.  I don’t have issues with unrealistic aspects but when the plot takes on medical impossibilities I kind of start to cringe inside.  The plot just took this left turn that instead of coming off dramatic and heartfelt came off to me as a little too ridiculous.  I don’t like to knock plots but for me I love stories that are grounded or gritty and this one went just a little too far for me to grasp. 

To Sum It All Up!

          I’m a sucker for second chance romances so I really loved the storyline and absolutely loved the characters.  Summer is my freaking hero and Damien is one sexy tattoo artist! It was great to see a female lead that is confident and has tons to offer a man rather than the typical virginal quiet woman with no confidence.  Plus, the sex scenes between Damien and Summer were nothing short of scorching and the love they both have for each other is apparent from the very beginning. 

          The story was a little rough around the edges, and I did feel like things were being talked at me rather than me be a part of the story watching this all unfold.  There was a ton of details which I really appreciated because so many times those little things are skipped over but I do wish there was more action and less description at times.  I really loved this story and I can’t wait to see what comes next in this series, I just hope that I can get more emotionally involved then I was in this book.