"In your own ill-fated yet correct words, didn't you once tell me-post your first interview here at GBH, that certain lies have to be told and certain truths have to be withheld? And that the ultimate conviction is up to those who can discern which is which?" I looked her up and down.
"Is that no the exact definition that you provided for reasonable doubt?"
It's taken me a good 24 hours to try and figure out how I felt about this last book in the RD3 series. I fell head over heels for Andrew and Aubrey in the first book and I was so freaking hooked on Andrew's brand of asshole. Which, frankly is kind of unusual for me because I'm not a huge fan of angst and drama.
There were moments, while reading this one, where I really questioned if I was even enjoying RD3. Now, don't freak out. I realized later, that I was unsure how I felt about Andrew. I think there was a small part of me that wondered if he would snap out of this rigid, uber-asshole person he had morphed into. I think I wondered if there was a soft(er) center to Andrew and would Aubrey be the one to chip away at it until she got to the heart of him.
To Ms. Williams credit, she didn't magically give Andrew a personality transfer. I think she could've easily taken the easy way out and made Andrew a softer version of himself and I think I would've hated that. There was no "seeing of the light" by Andrew where he turns into a completely different person, nor does he return to the guy he used to be before his life experiences changed him. And you know what? I can appreciate that! It took me a bit to figure that out. Andrew will always be....Andrew with (some) improvements... is that the word I'm looking for. I think the word I'm looking for is "tweaks". But I think that Andrew is a REALLY complex and very interesting character.
As for Aubrey- kudos to her for growing a pair and standing up for herself and putting her foot down with him and how he treated her. By doing so, she did help Andrew see that he could be an asshole but just not get away with to the extreme he did without consequences. Not only did she stand up for herself where she was concerned, she stood up for herself against her vapid parents. Thank goodness.
I was quite satisfied with this one, it wasn't just Andrew and Aubrey boinking and arguing. They both had issues they needed to deal with and we needed answers (Aubrey too) about Andrew and his past. The only thing I want is an epilogue to the epilogue and maybe one day I can explain what I mean without spoiling everyone. Until then....
Purchase RD3: Amazon // B&N
Reasonable Doubt #1: Amazon // B & N
Reasonable Doubt #2 Amazon // B &N
This review was originally posted on Straight Shootin' Book Reviews