WICKED REUNION (Wicked White #2) by Michelle A.Valentine-Review, Book Tour and Giveaway
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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date December 15, 2015
College sweethearts London Uphill and Jared Kraft were inseparable. He was a rising baseball star with a promising future, and she seemed destined to become “Mrs. Kraft.” Then a tragic night and a series of devastating mistakes caused Jared to walk away from his life, leaving London without any explanation and tearing the couple apart.
Five years later, Jared has reinvented himself by putting down the bat and picking up a guitar to play for the red-hot band Wicked White. In all that time, London hasn’t gotten over her forever love—or the pain—despite seeking solace in the arms of the one man no one dreamed she’d run to.
When Wicked White’s lead singer goes MIA, Jared finds the time—and courage—to return to his hometown and face the mess he made. He’s shocked at how London’s life has changed, yet he’s determined to prove their love is worth fighting for. Is this breakup too big for any hope of a reunion tour? Or can London open her heart to Jared once again?
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REVIEW: WICKED REUNION is the second installment in Michelle A.Valentine’s contemporary, new adult WICKED WHITE romance series. This is lead guitarist for the rock band Wicked White Jared Kraft, and primary school teacher London Uphill’s storyline-a second chance, of sorts, for two people whose lives imploded five years earlier. WICKED REUNION can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. There is a slight connection with Valentine’s Black Falcon series.
Told from alternating first person points of view (Jared and London) as well as alternating past and present timelines wherein the present day events of WICKED REUNION run parallel and cross over with the events of book one WICKED WHITE, WICKED REUNION follows the before and after of a traumatic and tragic night in the life of Jared, and his brother Wes Kraft, and Jared’s fiancée London Uphill. Michelle A. Valentine pulls the reader into a heartbreaking and painful series of calamitous events (after the fact) all perpetrated and instigated by Jared Kraft and his need to lash out at the pain of losing someone close. What ensues is Jared’s need to get out of town, leaving his family and his fiancée behind without a goodbye or KMA. Five years will pass before Jared returns home to face his family and friends.
WICKED REUNION is a roller coaster of events, flashbacks, memories and alternating timelines that follows Jared’s fall from grace, losing everyone that he loves, and in doing so walks directly into his rock and roll future in a matter of hours and days. While Jared’s star begins to rise on the rock and roll concert stage, London pines away back home hoping for the return of the only man she has ever loved. Five years will pass and our heroine is still worshiping at the altar of Jared Kraft even though he has yet to contact or acknowledge her existence the entire time.
The personality and lack of emotional depth in our heroine, borders on obsession and psychotic. She is unable to let go of the past, so much so, that it affects every aspect of her life. There is no light at the end of the tunnel for London Uphill-she is a woman lost in a world of loss and grief. London’s love for Jared has never faltered in the five years since he walked away, and in all of that time, London has toyed with the heart of another man knowing he will never be the one she loves.
Jared is a selfish and egotistical pr*ck: a rock star who wants center stage regardless of who and what the label says. His behavior towards London is reprehensible; his jealousy and obnoxious conduct is filled with temper tantrums, lashing out, and immature behavior. I felt there were no redeeming qualities in our storyline ‘hero’. It is only when he has to face what he has truly lost does Jared offer up an apology.
As I stated in my opening remarks WICKED REUNION is a story of second chances-of sorts-because our couple do not reconcile or meet again until the final couple of chapters of the novel, and in this I had some issues with London’s easy acceptance and ability to take back the man that has caused her so much heartache and pain. London welcomes Jared home with open arms, but not everyone is accepting of his return.
WICKED REUNION felt a bit disjointed in the telling of the story but the larger issue is London’s ‘Debbie Downer’ throughout the entire story. The finale was too quick and too neatly packaged-a frustrating end to an over dramatic situation. The conflict and its resolution was barely addressed leaving this reader disappointed. What started off as great potential went downhill very fast.
Click HERE for Sandy’s review of WICKED WHITE.
Copy supplied by Netgalley
Reviewed by Sandy
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Michelle A. Valentine is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Rock the Heart. Wicked White is the first novel in her Wicked White romance series. She attended college as a drafting and design major, but her love of people soon persuaded her to join the nursing field. It wasn’t until after the birth of her son that she began her love affair with romance novels, and she hasn’t looked back since. When she’s not writing, she feeds her music addiction, dabbles in party planning, and expresses herself by working with arts and crafts. She currently lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, son, and two beloved dogs.
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