Book Club | Reflected in You by Sylvia Day

It's been a long time since I last did a book club post, but truth be told I've been buried in academic texts, researching for my dissertation and haven't really been able to pick up my Kindle.  The second novel in the Crossfire trilogy came out at the beginning of October and it was just the kind of easy to read book I needed.  

"Gideon Cross. As beautiful and flawless on the outside as he was damaged and tormented on the inside. He was a bright, scorching flame that singed me with the darkest of pleasures. I couldn't stay away. I didn't want to. He was my addiction, my every desire, mine.  My past was as violent as his, and I was just as broken. We'd never work. It was too hard, too painful, except when it was perfect. Those moments when the driving hunger and desperate love were the most exquisite insanity.  We were bound by our need. And our passion would take us beyond our limits to the sweetest, sharpest edge of obsession..."

Just like 50 Shades of Grey, this book is fast fiction and definitely a fantasy.  The quality of writing is better than 50 Shades, but the plot in the second sequel is pretty much the same apart from the addition of Eva's past.  I quite liked the addition of Brett, Eva's ex-boyfriend, which had Gideon being even more unbearably controlling in their on-again-off-again relationship.  It's definitely an entertaining read and I will more than likely read the third, but if you're looking for something better written, I'd steer clear of these trashy chick lit stories.  

Currently reading: Cheryl Cole: My Story

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Book Club | Bared to You by Sylvia Day

"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..."

After the phenomenon that was 50 Shades of Grey, their were quite a few authors to hop onto the bandwagon.  The most successful runner up to the 50 Shades trilogy is the Crossfire series, with it's first installment 'Bared to You'.  Reading this book, their are many comparisons to E. L. James' popular books.  The main protagonist is a rich business man who's also gorgeous and haunted by his past, whilst the female lead Eva (not Ana) is also haunted by a horrific past.  They go about a far more realistic relationship than what Christian and Ana did, but by no means less glamourous.  The writing is so much better in Bared to You - I actually think Sylvia Day may have got an editor involved, whereas 50 Shades is debatable.  I found the story a lot more enjoyable, too.  If you liked 50 Shades then this is definitely another one to add to your booklist.  The only downside was that the sequel isn't out until October.  

Currently reading: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (going back to my childhood...)

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