Smut Fanatics: Laura’s Review of Awaken (Spiral of Bliss, #3) by Nina Lane

Synopsis

“I love that you love me, professor.”

“I love loving you, beauty.”

Since their intense, passionate beginning, Professor Dean West and his wife Olivia have fought dark secrets and betrayal in order to save their marriage. Now reeling in the aftermath of a personal tragedy, Liv and Dean are driven further apart by a vindictive threat to Dean’s career.

Struggling to stand on her own for the first time in years, Liv is determined to defend her husband and prove herself. Then an unexpected letter dredges up old insecurities and endangers Liv’s newfound independence. As Dean fights for his professional life, he is forced to confront his worst fear when he discovers that he can’t protect his beloved wife from her own painful past.

What I Loved

Wow, so much happens in this book and I loved every single minute of it! The story starts with Dean still embroiled in his sexual harassment case at the University and in Italy to get away from the whole mess. As the reader I could feel the longing between Dean and Liv so potently. When they were apart and in so many ways my heart broke for them because I just wanted them to be together always. It was hard on them both not having the other one a daily basis but at the same time kind of cute how they were courting each other all over again.

This romance series is so refreshing because it’s based on an already married couple, so we get to skip over the typical getting to know you crap and go right to the really good stuff! I love how Dean and Liv still want each other passionately and once they are in each other’s arms again it’s like the first time but so much better!

I think what I loved most about this book in particular was that Olivia finds her own path in life. Finally, Olivia has seemed to have found what she wants to do with her life and goes after it. I loved watching her and Allie and make this idea she had come to life and how much joy it brought to Liv’s life. Also it was amazing to see how supportive Dean was when Liv started creating her dream and even though things were not going his way he was still there to love and support his wife.

Not So Much

The only thing I didn’t care for was that I felt like the ending was a bit too rushed. The story didn’t really skip around a lot, unless to explain things about the past. So I was surprised how the ending rushed through some major parts of Liv and Dean’s lives. It was kind of disappointing; I was hoping that part of their story would be in the next book as this one was coming to a close but actually it was just rushed along instead. But I’m not going to completely knock the book just because I wanted more Dean and Liv in my life.

To Sum It All Up!

Things have definitely changed for Liv and Dean since the first book in this series, and it was so great to see all this character development. I can’t get enough of how much these two absolutely love each other and at the end of the day, isn’t that what matters most?

Shit has certainly hit the fan when it comes to Dean’s career and I was worried how that was going to affect their marriage, so it was rewarding to see them navigate those hard parts together. My heart really went out to Dean so many times because the odds were certainly stacked against him no matter what decision he made.

This book more so than the other ones has some pretty tense moments, one that truly had my jaw on the freaking ground! I try to write my reviews as spoiler free as possible so I won’t give anything away! All I will say is be prepared!! I truly love Dean and Liv, and for me this book solidified them as couple more so then the others ones ten times over. Also, I love the chemistry between Liv and Dean as well, the scenes between them is nothing short of sizzling and their passion certainly melts the pages! I can’t wait to see what is in store next for these two.

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