Rock King (Nothing But Trouble, #1)

by Tara Leigh

[Eve1972]

 
 
~WRITING - PLOT - PACE~
So color me surprised because I really enjoyed this book A LOT. I'll be honest, I usually avoid rock star books like the plague. They all tend to have the same cliché plots complete with OTT other women drama, groupies, and/or cheating. Thankfully, this one was a bit different. I was also impressed by how well written it was. The pace was fairly good. I think maybe it was a tad too long as some parts dragged a bit but not enough for me to lose interest in the story. The plot was quite engaging as well. Last, it was all wrapped up in an OK ending. I think Delaney should have made Shane grovel A LOT more than she did (or at all) because he pulled a righteous a$$hole move at the end that cost him some points in my eyes. 


~HERO~
SHANE...I liked him a lot. I liked that he was slightly different from the usual cliché rock star hero. Oh, he was still an uber manwhore in his past and I could have done with a little less bringing up of that fact throughout the book. But when he hired a fake girlfriend, he was monogamous while they were together. He was just a really sympathetic character. His past was tragic, and I just wanted to give the guy a hug. He pretty much fell for Delaney from the minute he meets her. That said like I mentioned above he lost some love in my eyes with the incredibly douchey move he pulled at the end. 


~HEROINE~
DELANEY...I liked her character a lot as well. Although I do wish she would have had more than one bad sexual experience before Shane. I am really tired of the uber whore being paired with an (almost) virgin. Delaney also has a tragic past that will break your heart. But she was a strong heroine who stood by Shane's side through everything.


 

~SECONDARY CHARACTERS~
There were quite a few secondary characters in this one. From Shane's manager Travis, and his brother Gavin (who I hope gets a book of his own) to Piper a friend of Delaney's that works for Travis. And of course Shane's bandmates (mostly Landon). In fact, next up is Piper and Landon's book and as much as I enjoyed this one I have no interest in reading their book AT ALL. Landon's character is pretty much your standard nasty uber manwhore. He grossed me out in this book and the brief look we get at his book (he just finishes up having had sex with two women) at the end of this one sealed the deal for me. I was kind of hoping this author would buck the trend when it comes to rock star books, but alas it seems like maybe this book was just a fluke...sigh.


~HEAT LEVEL~
Medium. This one had some smokin' sex scenes, and the frequency felt organic to the story. Both were tested, and the heroine is on the pill so they don't use condoms.


~ANGST LEVEL~
Medium. Most of the angst in this one comes from this couple's relationship. Their pasts. The secrets they are keeping. The contract. Stuff like that. There isn't any groupie or OW drama or OM drama. 


~IN THE END~
Like I said earlier, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one. Getting me to read, let alone LIKE a book featuring a rock star is tricky at best. But this author did a good job of avoiding the typical clichés found in this trope. She had two well written and intriguing individuals (along with a well developed plot) whose issues carried the book without adding in a lot of the typical outside drama. So kudos to her for that. Now I only wish she had continued along that line with Landon and Piper's book. C'est la vie. Yours truly is giving this one two solid thumbs up.