Cole

by Tijan

[stacey_is_sassy]

Loving the bad boy...

I'm going to be nice and leave my rating at 4-stars, but to be honest, I didn't really like the narration of Cole. I do not understand having a dual narration if the male narrator is only narrating for five minutes. Why even bother? The female narrator does an OK job but I found her voice a little too high pitched and she doesn't change it up much for each of the characters she portrays.

Listening to Cole was a little different to how I remembered the storyline when I read it. This was like throwing a 100 piece jigsaw puzzle in the air and it miraculously falling and coming together perfectly. What're the chances? Everyone and everything came together in a way that was predictable and unrealistic.

Not the worst but definitely not the best either. I should have stuck with reading it myself.
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Will this new attraction be her destruction?

Would you believe this is my first story by Tijan? I know, crazy. I, unfortunately, was under the misguided impression that the author wrote high school romance. Of all places, I got the recommendation to read Cole from the weekly puzzler in my historical romance reading group on Goodreads. Thank you, Okie. Without you, I would never have known and that would have been a terrible shame. Who would have thought historical romance set me on the path towards…the MAFIA.

Of late, I’ve been going into my reads blind. Well, kind of blind. I haven’t been re-reading the blurb on books I’ve previously bought. If an ARC hits my kindle, I might look at the cover, but most times, I just start reading. A few people have asked me how I read so many books one straight after the other. Well, this is my way. Each start is a new adventure, a new love story and a new happy ever after (hopefully). Every day I get the opportunity to be adventurous, sexy, mysterious and alluring. Well, today I lived through grief, looked beyond the square walls of my existence and took a hit for love.

Addison, our main character, has lived through losing the love of her life. Now, normally, this storyline would have had me running for the hills. I was determined to keep going and not be so narrow-minded. Who am I to say that Addy had to stay miserable for the rest of her life? I know that things change, people change and life happens. You can try and avoid making connections but sometimes a fleeting moment can change your whole life. I needed to give Addison a chance to find happiness again.

A man walked into a bar…well, it was actually a restaurant, but who’s quibbling. Anyways…this man caught and held Addy’s attention. It had been a very long year since she had lost her husband and she’s only just starting to live again. Her best friend Sia has been her rock and a wealth of support. Sia has helped her sell the home she lived in with her husband and find a place without the haunting memories. They were sitting in a restaurant after the move when this man walked in. It was like everything slowed down and Addy couldn’t look away. She was mesmerised…but it felt wrong. Was it disloyal to be attracted to another man? She tells herself to forget him. But then…he appears in the same building she now lives in. Maybe it was fate.

Will this new attraction be her destruction?

Cole is the head of the “family” and his life is filled with murder, mayhem and meetings. A woman comes into his life and he is determined to keep her there. He knows it’s a risk and could put her in danger but her appeal is too great. He has to have her…he just hopes it won’t be the biggest mistake of his life.

Cole and Addy’s story was not an easy love story. Both of them have history and as the story unfolds, we find out that they are kind of connected. Their attraction to each other was easy to see and once they connect, the sizzle and spark jumped off the pages. We see loyalty between friends and family and dedication to a legacy that has been going for years. Wars between families cause death and destruction.

I really enjoyed reading Cole and I’m so glad that I was introduced to Tijan’s world. Yes, I’ll probably avoid her high school stuff but after meeting Carter Reed, it looks like I’ve got a few books ready and waiting for me.