Exploited (Zero Day, #1)

by A. Meredith Walters

[chymerra]

Exploited is a fast-moving techno romance (is there such thing or did I just make up a genre….lol) that will keep you glued to the book. It is a page turner and you never know where this book will lead you and I loved it.


I am going to say this right up front, I didn’t like Hannah. Did I feel bad for her, sure. What happened to her family was pretty crappy and I can totally get why that pushed her into hacking. But her relationship with Mason took the cake and when it was revealed why she was with him, I was a little upset. That’s when I became “Team Mason” and started cheering on his investigation of Freedom Overdrive. What bothered me also about her was that she didn’t have any friends, work or personal. She explained it as a lack of trust but I wonder, as I do with fictional characters, if her lack of friends was because she had no personal skills. The only “friends” that she has is her fellow online hackers.

I liked Mason, even if he was the equivalent of a human stress ball. He made a mistake by sleeping with one of his fellow agents, who happened to be his superior, and things got a little, how do I phrase this, stressful at the office. He also has major issues with his parents. They are playing the blame game with him. When Mason’s brother, Dylan, was dying of brain cancer, he never got down to see him before he died. So, Mason’s mother and father blame his job and himself for not being there for Dylan. Which is pretty awful and those phone calls with his father just broke my heart.

While I didn’t like Hannah, I did like the romance between them….even if Hannah originally went into it under false pretenses. Their romance gave me major feels. And the sex was hot. Burning hot!!

The hacker plotline was very interesting and I can see the allure in it. I mean, Hannah got pulled into it by a friend because she was going to fail our of college. I am still not sure how she went from small time to big time and I am sure that they will explain it more in book 2.

This book does not have a happy ending and none of the plot lines got wrapped up. I can’t wait to see where this story ends up in book 2.

Playlist for Exploited:

Hannah

Believer by Imagine Dragons

Name by The Goo Goo Dolls

Choices by B-Side

Breathe Me by Sia

Mason

Trouble by Coldplay

Brother by Anna Pancaldi

Boombastic by Shaggy

Cry Me A River by by Justin Timberlake

Father of Mine by Everclear

How many stars will I give Exploited: 4

Why: Fast, intense storyline with great, layered characters and great sex scenes

Will I reread: Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends: Yes

Age range: Adult

Why: Sex, language

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**