Laura’s Review of Melancholy (Jokers’ Wrath MC, #2) by Bella Jewel

Synopsis

"There's never been a time I've cared about anything more than my club. Today that all changed. Today I got you."

To truly understand a story; you need to start from the beginning, but to start from the beginning; you have to go back, further than just you. After all, our stories don’t start with us, do they? Our stories start with the person before us, and the person before them. We are created from the stories of those people - from their mistakes, from their achievements, from their love and their hate.

No one’s story is ever truly their own.

I tried to create my own story, my own path, and my own actions. I’ve seen things people only see in their worst nightmares, but I never let it beat me down. I never let it become who I was. I picked myself up, and I kept going. Everything was what it was.

There was no point analyzing what it could be.

Could be’s didn’t matter.

Until Maddox came into the picture. He saved my life. He changed my world; giving me the second chance some of us only dream about. There was only one thing missing in my second chance, and she was the reason I fought so hard to survive.

My sister.

My sister who is supposed to be dead, well, at least, that’s what I thought.

That’s what he told me.

Now is where my story changes, but to understand this story, you have to start at the beginning…where it all began…and before.

This story is the second book in a series. You can get the first book on all major retailers. (Precarious - Jokers' Wrath MC Book 1)

This contains no cliffhanger and has a HEA. 18+

What I Loved

          We first meet Santana and Maddox in Precarious and although we get a good dose of them both in the first book there was something about their connection that intrigued me so I couldn’t wait to read their story.  These two definitely have a history filled with lots of sadness and a lot of drama.  I loved that not only do we get to see Maddox and Santana’s relationship grow but the chapters skip from past to present so we get the back story as well.  Santana has a very dark past filled with pain and loss like no other and her story sucked me in almost immediately.  Maddox’s over the top attitude makes him a very entertaining character and did not let me down in Melancholy. 

          I love MC romances because not only is there a ton of sex there is usually lots of action and suspense.  Melancholy had my heart in my throat and my butt at the edge of my seat several times.  The tension between Santana and Maddox builds to a steamy explosion that I definitely enjoyed.  I loved how far Maddox was willing to go to make Santana happy and he more than proved that over and over again.  It made the plot that much more engrossing and I couldn’t put this story down.

Not So Much

          The story was out of this world amazing filled with tons of action and drama.  What it wasn’t filled with though was details!! Once again I have no idea where this series is taking place.  I don’t want to give anything away but the characters do take a plane ride to Mexico so I am going to assume this all takes place in America but I can’t really confirm that.  I get that maybe the author wants the reader to make the background themselves and it would be more personal.  And a part of that is totally true but giving an actual place for this all to take place gives the plot more depth and the foundation for the series more character.

          I really love Santana but she kind of crosses the line of ridiculous at certain points with her constant running away, saying she’ll never do it again and then does.  I love back and forth in romances because it builds tension but there is a point where it becomes annoying and the plot skirted that line a lot.  There was a lot of twists and turns and there was a point where the story became too unrealistic.  I get that this is fiction so I don’t like coming down on authors for being unrealistic but there does come a point where it’s just too farfetched and this story went there. Fictional romances are more captivated the more grounded they can be not by adding too much to the overall story.

To Sum It All Up!

          Santana and Maddox attracted me from book one, their chemistry and connection was unmistakable so I was excited to read their story.  They both have lead hard lives, and have tried to build something beautiful out of an ugly past.  That’s probably what I loved most about these characters; that they both have overcome so much to build a stable life for themselves.  It was great to finally see Santana pull her head out of her ass, stop running accept the fact that Maddox is her other half.  It was also cute to watch Maddox fall head over heels in love with a girl he rescued from the streets so many years ago.  I liked that the book switched between past and present so we get the entire story not just memories or recollections.   I do feel like there was too much going on making the plot chaotic at times, but it kept me on my toes and turning the page.  I’m really enjoying this series and can’t wait to see what is coming up next!