stacey_is_sassy
Written on Jan 1, 2017
You can be strong alone or stronger with someone at your back.
I love reading romance and I have to admit that if there’s a touch of insta lust/love, I get a little giddy. I know there are a lot of people who don’t believe in it but I have always believed that if there isn’t a little insta, then there’s a chance there won’t be any everlasta. If you have no idea what that last sentence means, let me explain my thoughts on insta…
I believe that a spark is needed for love to ignite. That spark doesn’t have to be based on looks, it could easily be a spark of admiration or a spark generated by a meeting of the minds. That instant spark, lets you know that there is a potential for connection. You can then take that instant lust / love / connection /admiration and turn it into an everlasting lust / love / connection / admiration. Insta is just the start, everlasta is whatever you make it be. You just have to let the spark ignite.
Complex Kisses has a spark that ignites from the very beginning. Jamie and Eric are at the same hospital watching a family member suffer. Jamie is watching over her dying father whom she has been estranged from for the last 10 years. Eric is here to support his baby brother Caleb who is fighting cancer. Both Jamie and Eric are struggling. Hospitals are not pleasant places to be especially as you watch someone you love or have loved suffer.
When a little flirty spark named Caleb meets a beautiful spark named Jamie and tries to make her smile, it’s the big and generous spark named Eric that ignites.
Caleb is 14 and thinks Jamie is one of the most beautiful women he’s ever met. With big brother Eric behind him, he flirts up a storm to make Jamie smile. Eric admires his little brother's confidence in approaching this beautiful woman and is fascinated with the beautiful woman who doesn’t treat his little brother like he is only sick. Jamie is touched deeply by Caleb who while facing his own issues, takes the time to try and make her smile. Caleb, with his baldy head and sickly pallor, teaches two grown-ups to make the most of every day.
Complex Kisses is not just a story about dealing with sickness and death, it’s also about coming to realise that you may not have been living the life you were meant to. Eric has lived his life following the path set for him. He had a successful career and a woman in his life who he thought suited his lifestyle. When Caleb’s heath issues were diagnosed, Eric realised his life was shallow and not at all what he wanted for himself. With the job gone and the woman out of his life, he’s looking for a new path.
Jamie has not had an easy life. She lost her mother and sister when she was younger and her father never really recovered. When Jamie and her father should have been there for each other to help and support through their grief, He turned to alcohol and She turned to her boyfriend who she thought she loved. At seventeen Jamie finds out she has a surprise entering her life and when she needs support from her loved ones, they desert her in her time of need. Her new path was forced upon her but it made her stronger and ended up being one of the best things to happen in her life.
Jamie and Eric are attracted to each other physically, but it’s the support they give to each other that really helps them connect. It’s not easy to start a relationship when your father in lying in a bed dying or when your mother spends her days crying over your sick brother. The little time outside of the hospital that they spend together is time to get to know each other better. In a short amount of time Jamie and Eric’s feelings deepen but both of them are too scared to trust them.
I really enjoyed Complex Kisses. Considering this is Kim Bailey’s debut novel, she has done an amazing job. I will admit that there were a couple of times that I felt it was a bit bogged down with inner-monologue but then again, this was a story about looking into yourself. I also had a WTH moment when I thought it was going to end in a cliffie, but of course, it was just me being silly. Jamie does do something towards the end that I wanted to smack her silly for, but luckily Eric gave her a talking to and fixed it right up lickity split.
I loved the characters, the storyline made me think and the steamy scenes showed a great connection between the characters. I definitely recommend Complex Kisses and will be reading more of this authors work in the future.
To purchase Complex Kisses from Amazon for $0.99 - http://amzn.to/2hGc2QS
I’m an Aussie chick who loves to read and review romance, drink coffee, be a Style Setter and stalk David Gandy. To see more of my reviews, fashion, food and pervathons -