Bared To You – Review
Category: Adult Contemporary Romance/Erotica
Keywords: Romance, erotica, contemporary
Format: Paperback, eBook
Source: e-ARC received from Netgalley
Synopsis:
Our journey began in fire… Gideon Cross came into my life like lightning in the darkness-beautiful and brilliant, jagged and white-hot. I was drawn to him as I’d never been to anything or anyone in my life. I craved his touch like a drug, even knowing it would weaken me. I was flawed and damaged, and he opened those cracks in me so easily… Gideon knew. He had demons of his own. And we would become the mirrors that reflected each other’s most private wounds… and desires. The bonds of his love transformed me, even as I prayed that the torment of our pasts didn’t tear us apart.
Review:
I picked up Bared To You in a whim after reading a favorable review of it on one of the blogs that I follow. It wasn’t until after I had gotten it that I learned that it was being compared to Fifty Shades of Grey. I am one of the few people who hasn’t read Fifty Shades yet and I am not likely to. I’ve been able to read a few excerpts from it here and there that have convinced me that I will not enjoy it. So I can’t really make any comparisons to Fifty Shades, which is probably a good thing, as this book should stand on its own.
Bared To You begins when NYC transplant Eva Trammell starts a new job and runs into possibly the most handsome and compelling man she’s ever met. Gideon Cross is a force to be reckoned with, a billionaire businessman who owns properties all over NYC who also happens to be drop dead gorgeous (seriously where are all these hot men in my office building?). The chemistry between Eva and Gideon is immediate and Gideon wastes no time in letting Eva know exactly what he wants from her.
This is the story of two extremely damaged people trying their best to be in a relationship. On one hand, I think that their pasts make Eva and Gideon perfect for each other. Both understand the kinds of things that the other has gone through and are willing to work on their issues. But on the other hand, you have two really messed up people together who don’t always deal with things in a healthy way. Eva, for one, runs away when things get tough or uncomfortable. But it’s something that she admits to and is trying to overcome.
Gideon seems like the more put together of the two, but he has his own dark demons. The author doesn’t really get into too much detail with Gideon’s past, which I think we need to understand him more. I also had some issues with Gideon’s stalker tendencies. I enjoy a little possessiveness in my male protagonists but I felt like Gideon was stepping over the line at times. Making copies of her keys, following her, looking into her cell phone – these are all things that I think are really not cool. He justifies his actions in many ways and Eva accepts his excuses, making them seem sweet instead of creepy. Given Eva’s character and her past, I just don’t think she should have accepted his excuses so easily.
Despite some of the issues I had with it, I did enjoy reading this. Gideon and Eva are both very compelling characters. They are both very flawed but are working to overcome their issues. Day does a good job of showing how their intense physical attraction evolves into something more.
I am not sure how Gideon and Eva’s relationship is going to translate into three books. That seems like a really long time to follow these two so I can only imagine that there is going to be a lot of drama in the next book. Hopefully we’ll learn more about Gideon’s past and I’d also love to see more of Eva’s best friend Cary. Day’s definitely piqued my interest with this one and I look forward to seeing where she takes these two.
*I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.
