3.5 Smooches!
Synopsis
He’s silent—but his touch speaks louder than words.
At first sight, Savannah is drawn to the harsh appeal of a man who refuses to talk to her. Keenan’s hard stare is arrogant and unapologetic. The quirk of his sensuous lips is cocky and in control.
But there’s more. There’s something deeper he’s trying to hide behind those steely grey eyes—a slight hint of vulnerability which captures her intrigue.
She’d been warned, told that his silence hides a myriad of lies capable of affecting her career and relationships with loved ones. Only she can’t help herself. Testing Keenan’s defenses is an addiction she can’t deny.
Falling in lust is easy. Learning his secrets comes with a price. The cost? Her broken heart.
REVIEW
I’m not sure what I expected going into Inarticulate, but I was definitely intrigued by the blurb. I’m in a bit of an unusual position now, having to admit that I struggled to get through it in some places while I almost devoured it in others. So let me start by saying first that this book was very well written. Eden Summers has a way of weaving her words elegantly, and this book, given the constraints of the hero, absolutely warranted that type of writing skill. Unfortunately, though, for as much as I was able to appreciate the author’s undeniable writing talent, I still found this story to be, at times, almost frustrating to get through.
My personal tastes when it comes to those stories that I’m most drawn to tend to be the ones that are more dialogue centric. Obviously for this story, there wouldn’t be any spoken words or bantering or back-and-forth, but while the hero didn’t verbally communicate, he did have a lot to say. But it was one of his main methods of communication with Savannah, given his limitations, that I found to be a bit exasperating. I had a hard time accepting that entire conversations between this couple were had gazing into each other’s eyes and reading the emotions there.
I’m purposely being a bit vague here, and for that I apologize, but I don’t want to offer any spoilers here. There were some twists and turns that I really don’t want to give away. I had issues with a few other plot points as well, but primarily, I think it was actual conversations between the Keenan and Savannah that I was missing. Disappointingly, this lack of dialogue was replaced with long – very long – internal monologues. I totally believe that some internal dialogue is necessary in any story to give the reader insight into a character but, more often than not, these lengthy monologues tipped the scale into rambling and were just too drawn out for me.
The thing is, though, that Summers managed to create a wholly interesting, enigmatic, mysterious character in Keenan, the hero, and she did it, unbelievably, without him uttering a single word. That in itself was an incredible feat, but it was made even more so because while no actual words left his mouth, he still had a lot to say. I had a bit of a tougher time warming up to the heroine. Savannah was almost dispassionate, having just extricated herself from a complicated, loveless, colleagues (not even a friend!) with benefits situation. She was presumptuous and, at times, judgmental, and it was exactly those qualities that were the driving forces in her culpability.
Again, this book was beautifully written, and there were a lot of things I did like about this story. The plot was interesting and there was an unusual element of suspense to this book that was fresh and different and very well done. Keenan and Savannah positively sizzled together; their chemistry leapt right off the page. There was intrigue and secrecy, and it was what drove the plot along and kept me going – I wanted to know what was going to happen! – during those parts where I was frustrated by the wordiness of those inner monologues.
Inarticulate wound up being a bit hit or miss for me. Fortunately, there were enough hits to keep me going to completion. I’m coupling that with the stellar writing and giving Eden Summers’ Inarticulate 3.5 smooches.
~ Danielle Palumbo
