Ashes and Embers #1
KU ebook
Author: Carian Cole
Evelyn is driving alone in the snow for a seminar at work. She really hates driving in these conditions but her boyfriend refused to drive her. When’s he slides off the road, the stranger behind her comes to her rescue and gives her a ride… until a deer shows up and they end up in a ditch, under heavy snow and no cell phone reception. The only way to survive this sis to rough it in the car until the plows come. What Evie doesn’t know is that she’s stranded in the car with Storm Valentine, the famous guitar player of Ashes and Embers. They spend two days together alone in the car with his dog, and when rescue comes, Storm doesn’t want to let go of Evie. But she’s taken, and she doesn’t really know who he is…
I want to start this review by saying I’m giving this author a pass because this was her first ever novel, but boy I have thoughts. Brace yourselves.
1 – Cheating – yup, they get it own while stranded. And yes, that is sex. It’s a hard pass for me but I was willing to let it slide because her boyfriend is a first class douchebag.
2 – Single POV (Evelyn’s) – this for me is the root of the problem. We only see her point of view and she’s sheltered, so her saying yes and at the same time saying no to Storm ended yup giving me rape-y vibes from him. Made me cringe. Not good.
3 – Too much backstory we don’t learn about. You are always feeling like you are watching the second season of a show without watching the first, where all characters were introduced.
4 – Slut shaming – seriously? This is a 2014 book! The book is swamped with slut shaming by Evie herself and several other characters. The way Jill is described rubbed me the wrong way. If anything, she was badly treated by the guys around her, imho.
5 – Storm’s pregnant, teenager wife committed suicide and it’s not addressed at all in the book. Maybe it will be further along in the series, but it’s supposed to be a standalone.
So, between the cheating and the slut shaming, I really couldn’t get behind the characters. It was a story full of potential for me and I wanted so much more. Maybe because Torn and Tied are so beautiful and Don’t Kiss The Bride is such a good book I was expecting more, but since it’s a debut novel, like I said, I’m giving it a pass.
I’ll try book #2, we’ll see.
Possible triggers: cheating by the main character; descriptions of animal abuse; mentions of suicide, drug addiction, alcoholism; panic attack on page
