Publication Date
November 2009
Publisher
Ellora's Cave
Available At
Kate Snow's has enough of bad boys until a one-way swim in the ocean puts her on a collision course with a man she can't resist. Charlie Storm has turned being a bad boy into an art form. Already a famous pop star, mega-success in the movie business beckons until his inner demons send him spiraling out of control and right out to sea. The last thing he expects to do before he dies is crash into a suicidal woman. When the worlds of these two strangers collides, their lives take an upward twist. In surviving the waves, they find they can't stand to be apart, in or out of bed. Kate seizes a chance for happiness, seeing in Charlie a man she can finally trust to love her. Charlie can't let go of Kate because she's the only woman able to see the man he wants to be. But the price of pain is high and when the world wants to drive them apart, life only seems safe in Kate's bed.
Review
Genre: Contemporary Romance/Erotica Romance(18+)
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Dark, emotional and gritty. Oh, and don't forget steamy and hot. Strangers is deeply intense, sure to pull in the reader.
Kate and Charlie are two extremely screwed-up individuals that harbor dark pasts. Now, I don't condone suicide(who does?), but Kate and Charlie's lack of wanting to continue life undoubtedly bonds them. They each have depth which is perfectly portrayed by Barbara Elsborg's writing. Kate is a greatly likable female protagonist. She may not believe herself to be strong, but she is and that's the beauty of her character. The reader gets to see all the positive attributes of her character as we watch her struggle with her inner demons. She's also very witty and the banter between Charlie and Kate adds to the story, further showing the undeniable connection that these two possess. Kate and Charlie have similarities but they also have vast differences, and not just that Charlie happens to be famous. Charlie is a piece of work, he's, of course, smoking hot, but he is haunted by past events in his life that affect the way he acts in the present. He has unbridled rage that he tapers down with sex, drugs and alcohol. Simply put, he's a womanizing cocaine addict that hates himself. They each have inner demons that are fighting to drown them, and individually they are helpless to fight back, together they become the others life preserver.
As the story opens up we are introduced to the two characters as they literally collide. We are then swiftly taken to first Kate's events leading up to the attempted suicide and then Charlie's. I found this to be a successful way to reveal both of their pasts in a simple yet artful way to rely the information. If you follow my reviews then you already know that I love stories that provide the males perspective. Strangers does this and, quite frankly, the story needed this. There is so much going on between Charlie and Kate, as well as separately, that we need to see both perspectives. To say that the reader will be taken on an emotional roller coaster is an understatement. Strangers is filled with witty banter, steamy sex scenes, raw, emotional moments, tender moments and even moments that might have the reader flinching back from the abrasive reality. But what a read!
If you are a reader who enjoys steamy romances between two unlikely, desperate, people that perfectly fit together than Strangers is for you. Just a warning, though, Strangers is an erotica story so if you aren't into adventurous sexual scenes then I would not recommend this book to you. Also, needless to say, you should be 18+ to read this.
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