4 Smooches!
Synopsis
Thirteen years as a rugby superstar.
Thirteen years of winning streaks, of making more money than I’ve known how to spend, of women throwing themselves at me.
Thirteen years since I last saw her, knowing she has every right to hate me, her so-called stepbrother.
Thirteen years knowing I ruined her life and left without looking back.
Or so she thinks.
Money can’t buy forgiveness, but at least it can get my foot in the door.
Hooked is a complete, standalone romance novel with mature themes intended for readers 18 and over.
Review
Would you believe this is the first step-brother romance I’ve read. I was probably too presumptuous about those storylines because I thought they all sounded so similar but I was glad I eased myself into this sub-genre with Iris Parker’s Hooked.
Simon Ferguson did nothing but make his step-sister Emelia’s life a living heck in the two years they spent under the same roof, thirteen years ago. English, rugby playing and with enough swagger and confidence to rival any sports superstar, Simon feels the intense need to make amends and rectify all the wrongs he caused as a teenager, starting with intelligent and benevolent Emelia.
‘“That fire,” he said softly into my ear, his lips brushing the soft, tender patch beneath my earlobe as he made his way down towards my collar bone.
“And if I’m not more careful, it’s going to grow and grow. You’re the only one who could put it out, and the blaze will devour me whole.”’
It was incredibly interesting to read the destructive and bitter teenage Simon’s diary entries, I think it was certainly beneficial so that we as the reader got an insight into how bad and haunting his thought process was but I still think we would have benefitted from actually going back to that time and experiencing those incidents because without them I still felt a strange disconnection from Simon. Emelia is a kind hearted and forgiving heroine but one with a good backbone and integrity, especially when she has run ins with her arch nemesis, in fact some very good comedic scenes comes from a little friendly competition between the two.
It was a good book but I did think it needed expanded upon in certain areas. I enjoyed it thoroughly but just didn’t love it because of this. The sexual tension was again good but I feel like it too could have been explored a bit more therefore amping up the chemistry and friction between the hero and heroine. It was well written and the dialogue was witty and fresh and the contrast between Simon’s English tongue and Emelia’s American was on point, usually it’s difficult to get it right without one of them coming across as stereotypical and misused, but Iris certainly has her characters down pat.
~Nicole
