Laura’s Review of Flawed Love (House of Obsidian, #2) by Bella Jewel

Synopsis

**FLAWED LOVE is a standalone second chance romance with a HEA**

Rainer Torrence is everything I could have wanted in my life and more.

He became my best friend when I was Thirteen years old.

From then on, we were inseparable. He was my first love and my first heartbreak.

But I always thought it was forever.

Until his Father died and things went bad.

Then suddenly, he disappeared.

Ten years and I didn’t see or hear from him.

Then came the call I’d be praying for– he was back in town.

Only the man I remembered is not him.

This man is quiet, deadly, and so incredibly beautiful.

He also doesn’t remember me.

He looks into my eyes, and he sees nothing.

Nothing.

So, I let him believe I’m just a girl that walked into his bar.

I let him believe I’m just a friend.

I let him use me on the cold, dark nights.

I let him believe that I am as emotionless about our relationship as he is.

I just let the secret go on and on.

But all secrets have an end, don’t they?

What I Loved

                   This the second in a very enjoyable series about second chance romances and after getting hint of Rainer in Flawed Heart I was excited to find out more about him.  We meet Mali (Emalie) in book one for about five seconds, but they were an intriguing five seconds and I instantly wanted to learn more about her as well.  I love that Bella Jewel ends one book leading into the next because it instantly makes the reader want more.

          I liked that the story switched from past to present so we got the full impact of Rainer and Mali as kids and what their relationship used to be like.  Plus it really drove home the devastation of Rainer disappearing and the massive amount of changes they both went through from then on out.  When they are so cruelly ripped from each other’s lives I totally had tears in my eyes.  To say Rainer and Mali’s story sucked me in is an understatement and watching them find each other again kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. A sexy naked Rainer certainly helped in that category as well J

Not So Much

         Overall this was a great story and I truly loved both the main characters, but the constant back and forth between the two got annoying.  Rainer kept on running back to Pippa, worrying about her feelings but when Mali finally has had enough he just flips a switch and that’s it.  That all was just a little too neat for me and too fast.  There was this power struggle between Pippa and Mali throughout the entire book and it kind of just ended too simply for me.  Personally I would’ve kicked Rainer to the curb way before Mali did but even then he was so quick to say he’ll never do it again, she was too quick to accept his promise.  It was like the last part of the book fast forwarded through the plot rather than keep the pace steady.

To Sum It All Up!     

           Rainer was someone who captivated in the beginning of this series and since I know Pippa from both the Jokers Wrath MC series and Flawed Heart I was intrigued to find out more about their past.  My heart completely broke for Rainer and his struggle as a teen and then as an adult trying to make a life for himself when the simplest things seem impossible to overcome.  I loved how strong Mali was as a teen and as an adult, breaking away from her family’s expectations and fighting for her love. The attraction between both characters leads to some pretty steamy sex scenes making their chemistry pour off the pages.

I do wish we got to see a little bit more of Mali’s family in the present, they are very rarely talked about when she is an adult but talked about a lot as a child.  The character development and plot was great, but more detail would have added to the foundation of the overall story. 

I don’t know if this is the last in this series, but Raide is a character we meet over and over again so I’m excited to switch to The Alpha’s Heart series and get to know him a lot better!