Saturday, March 8, 2014

Review for Out of the Ashes by S.M. Lynn

Synopsis: Can love really conquer all? Even when the secrets are so big, someone could die for keeping them, has died to keep them?

Celeste Brooks is haunted by a past she cannot escape. Plagued by nightmares and fear that her secret will be discovered, she buries herself in her MBA and work, opening up to no one except her roommate, Gavin. Until her path crosses with his.

Ian Jacobs made a vow when his heart was broken that he would never allow anyone that close again. Being a sexy business mogul has its perks, and having many attractive women throw themselves at you is just one. Until his path crosses with hers.

As soon as Ian finds Celeste has applied for a position with Jacobs Enterprises, he takes matters into his own hands, knowing that he must possess this woman at any cost. Celeste finds herself under Ian’s spell and knows that she will do anything to be close to this man. Including revealing her secrets? As their paths, past and present, collide, they must decide to risk it all or leave each other behind.

4 Mysterious Stars

Review: 
I'm not sure where to start with my review for Out of the ashes. I want to say early on in this review that there is a cliffhanger at the end. I'm not a huge fan of cliffhangers, but I also began to expect that there would be a cliffhanger, so I think I was mentally, if not emotionally, prepared for it. We begin with the apparent death of a young girl, just out of college and seemingly at the prime of her life, poised to marry a man that everyone deems perfect for her. Then, we pick up with Celeste, whom has just completed her MBA and is getting ready to apply for her dream job at Jacobs' Enterprises. To celebrate her graduation, Celeste goes out with her roommate and best friend, Gavin, and ends up meeting a man that takes her breath away and then takes her back to her apartment. He is gone by the next morning, but not for long. This man ends up being Ian Jacobs, whom she ends up interviewing with and gets offered a job as his personal assistant.

Ian and Celeste seem to continue misunderstanding one another's feelings for each other for several months until, finally, they recognize the mutual feelings in one another. Celeste seems to really be enjoying her new job, and it is good to see a female character not seem to wilt away and need the guy's attention. Instead, she really jumps into her new job and stays busy working - although, it is with Ian, so I'm sure that that helps. Celeste is keeping a major secret from Ian, and, as the reader, you really begin to think that you know what it is. Ian, however, also seems to be keeping something from Celeste. She has several negative interactions with Rebecca, another employee, who seems to have a personal connection with Ian. His secret definitely seems to involve her, so Celeste begins to feel very insecure. I did not like Celeste's reaction to Ian's possible connection to Rebecca at several points, as she would immediately cry and ask Ian to hold her. I think that there were times that I just wanted her to yell at him and tell him to tell her what was going on or to just be honest. BUT, I understand why she felt that she couldn't force him, as she was also keeping a secret and not being honest. I still wanted her to be stronger, at times, than she was, however.

Once Celeste and Ian are together, they begin to explore one another in some pretty steamy ways! They definitely have the heat factor. Celeste continues to have nightmares about her past, and you begin to see that she experienced some pretty difficult things, in regards to a past relationship. Ian, though, he is just amazing. Not only is he hot and very successful, but he is also willing to share Celeste with his family. While he struggles to tell Celeste how he feels, he is constantly showing her how he feels. This factor makes Ian such an amazing guy, but his care for others also causes some friction in his relationship with Celeste when Rebecca continues to try to gain a foothold in his life. All of this leads towards Celeste's secret being revealed right at the very end. I had begun to suspect what her secret might be about, so I was frustrated with some of her actions. I wanted to yell at her to continue to be careful and not relax her guard! At the end, we see someone from Celeste's past explode back into her life. I can't wait to see what happens next. Ian better be ready to kick some a**. 

There were a few grammatical errors that I noticed, but I was provided a copy by the author for my honest review, so it is possible that these could have been edited at this point. Also, as mentioned before, there is a cliffhanger, so if you are prone to pull out your hair at cliffhangers, hold out until at least the second book is out. And finally, I love the cover of this book - I feel like it is actually a great representation of Ian and Celeste!

Jess

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