Stars: 2.5
Author: Cecilia Tan
Publisher: Hachette Book Group
Genre: Romance/Erotica
As a whole work I'm very unsure how to rate these books. I feel like the first book was maybe a 3.5 star read, but it lacked an ending which certainly knocked it back a star. Then there is the fact that the first book feels like almost a completely different story than the next two, though one does not work without the other two which makes it confusing. The second two books are very, very short, more like novellas which was aggravating since they are the same price.
Slow Surrender is more like novel length, but it feels like the author just didn't feel like giving the reader the ending because she wanted it to be a trilogy. The trouble then is that the ending isn't provided for the reader until Slow Seduction, but there is a lot that really isn't needed in those last two books and so I feel like the whole thing could just be condensed into one volume and share the reader a lot of trouble and reduce the amount of skimming.
Slow Surrender grabbed my attention because of the very mysterious James who is introduced right away as he asks Karina a question when she waitressing. They immediately begin playing a "game" of seduction. Karina doesn't know the rules, and neither does the reader. That works well and draws the reader into the story. The reader remains in the dark about who James is and his intentions with Karina throughout the entire book. That mystery provides thrilling aspect that makes you want to keep reading. There are definitely obvious clues as to James' true identity, but it is still fun to read about Karina and James' encounters because for the whole first volume it feels like they are virtual strangers becoming more and more intimate without their relationship progressing in any "normal" way.
However, James' true identity was a bit of a deal-breaker, really a jump-the-shark moment for me because it just seemed utterly ridiculous.
SPOILER!! Seriously, I'm going to spoil it, stop reading.
It turns out that not only is James a rich, reclusive, dominant, and a billionaire (so I'm totally fine with him up to this point), he is also--- wait for it--- a international rocker star of MYSTERY. I mean that literally, he is this ridiculously well-known rock star (known for his rock operas, of course! you know, like all those rock stars that are known for such things) who has always kept his real identity a secret from his fans by using masks during performances and hiding literally from the press.
Now, I don't have any problem with the idea of hidden identities or rock stars. In fact, I like both tropes in my romance, but this whole scenario seemed a bit over the top. And I'll tell you why: James is initially presented to the reader as a sort of refined business man type. He's constantly in and out of meetings, and going various places with his driver in his limo, talking on his phone and he's always very, very busy. Classic, billionaire romance hero stuff, you know. THEN we find out that James is also a gifted artist not just a rich guy who asks random waitresses to stick marbles in their panties. In fact, it turns out that his glassworks are re-known in the art community and he has displayed his work at various art shows, also keeping his true artist identity a secret. THEN we find out that James is also very involved in the BDSM scene and is a member of an exclusive and secretive BDSM club where he attends and is a well-known and much coveted dominant. Finally, we also find out that he is a gifted modern dancer, and performs on stage when in his rock-star persona with other dancers. **Just a quick insert here-- he practices and performs for his "rock operas" wearing spandex pants and a mid-drift top. Karina of course thinks this is so HAWT. I do not. I think that might actual have been the exact moment that this character was lost to me. I cannot in good conscious believe that a man who has been described as urbane and sophisticated, driving around in a limo in NYC wearing three piece suits would then don a pair of spandex leggings and a belly shirt and prance about on a stage doing modern dance.
I don't know about you but for me James has WAY TOO MANY THINGS GOING ON FOR ONE CHARACTER. Like WAY too many. He loses all credibility by book three because there is just too much going on. He cannot be amazing at everything and it doesn't even make sense for all of these interests to be combined in one character. In the first book the reader doesn't really know or understand the many facets of James the Amazing Spandex Prancer, but by book three you are blown away by the sheer amount of things happening with him, and not in a good way.
So that whole angle really didn't work for me, and it basically made the books not work for me.
SPOILER END.
However, what did work for me is the very good writing and excellent portrayal of the BDSM culture. The D/s scenes that James and Karina play out with each other I felt were well-done and pretty stand out for the genre as a whole. I wish actually that this book had focused only on D/s element between the two characters because there is a lot to explore there as Karina experiences being a submissive with James for the very first time. The reader gets to see her go through that as she realizes that she really enjoys it and she is sort of flummoxed abut her feelings. Also, the latter two books briefly, but in my opinion much too superficially, explore Karina's mental state as she wonders if she enjoys being a submissive in general, or if it is just James that gets her going. That would have made a better, more emotionally potent book for me.
The whole thing should be condensed in to one volume and all the other nonsense in James character should be taken out. Tan should also get rid of the whole bit with Karina going to London and almost becoming a submissive at the secret BDSM club, but then doing actually doing it, and go straight to the reconciliation between her and James. If I was editing this book that is what I'd do.
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