The Australian
Crime Royalty Romance # 2
By: Lesley Young
Releasing March 27, 2015
Self-Published
Blurb
Charlie Sykes takes everything and everyone at face value—and believes life would be a lot easier if everyone else did, too. Aussie Jace Knight, international hotelier and purported playboy, has never met anyone like the absurdly literal and beautiful American who applies for his personal assistant position. The trouble is, how do you pursue a woman whose definition of flirting comes straight out of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary? That, and he’s not the only one after Charlie. Seems Mr. Knight might not be a reformed criminal after all.
Soon, Charlie’s immersed in a whirlwind of international espionage that takes her from the hip streets of Sydney to the majestic Great Barrier Reef and the wild, desolate outback. A dangerous trap’s being set, but how will Charlie protect herself and prevent a tragic betrayal, when she can’t even sort out what her heart’s telling her?
Link to Follow Tour: http://www.tastybooktours.com/2015/03/the-australian-crime-royalty-romance-by.html
EXCERPT
“Look me in
the eye.”
I did as he
asked.
“Now ask
me.”
“Are you,”
I caught my breath, “involved in criminal activities?” I sounded very quiet.
Not myself.
I felt a
burn in my nose, and my eyes grew blurry. He blew air out of his nose and
stepped closer, but I stepped back, needing space to stay the course.
“Don’t,” I
said.
“Don’t
what?” he asked, tenderly.
I flashed
on him again, surprised. His face had grown lighter, calmer . . . maybe as he
took in my sadness. He had uncrossed his arms, and tilted his head to the side.
No. I knew
what he was trying to do.
“Seduce the
truth away,” I answered, remembering how he had reassured me in Port Douglas
with physical affection.
His mouth
popped open.
“I deserve
better.”
He
flinched, and, after a moment, glanced away.
Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24976491-the-australian?ac=1
Goodreads Series Link: https://www.goodreads.com/series/143063-crime-royalty-romance
Buy Links: Amazon
Author Info
Lesley Young is an award-winning Canadian journalist by day, and compulsive novelist by night. Her debut novel, Sky’s End (Soulmate Publishing, 2013) hit #9 on Amazon’s sci-fi romance paid best-seller list in its first three months of release. Not too long after that, she started dreaming up quirky heroines who lose their hearts to extremely powerful, imperfect heroes, while on dangerous adventures abroad. She called it the Crime Royalty Romance series, and kicked it off with The Frenchman, which landed her an agent at Spencerhill Associates. Lesley’s never sure who or what will pop up in her imagination next. The Irishman? The Spaniard? The Englishman? She’s taking requests!
So I wasn't sure what to think about this book when I started; Charlie is unlike any character I've read. I don't mean that in a negative way, it's just the way she interprets the world. But the more I read, the more I began to realize that Charlie reminds me of my youngest daughter. They both are very literal beings, the world is black and white, they don't see the grays. Once I made that realization, it made the story fly and I was finished before I knew it.
I will say that I would have preferred this story be told from both characters' POV; since I live with someone who thinks like Charlie, reading her POV on every little thing began to wear me down. It would have been great to get the story from Jace's side, something to mix up the never ending conscious stream that is Charlie. Even the sexy times weren't that sexy when hearing it from Charlie. It's not to say it's a bad story because it's not, it's just that Charlie seems to be one of those characters who you'll tolerate, but you might not actually love her outright.
The overall story is a good one though, but I do hope that future Crime Royalty stories feature characters I actually want to engage with.
ARC provided in exchange for honest review.
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