Review: A Spiral of Bliss Series (Books 1, 2, & 3) by Nina Lane

I recently had the opportunity to read the A Spiral of Bliss series by Nina Lane. Though these weren't my normal paranormal genre, the descriptions were interesting, so I decided "why not!" Three books later...and I haven't looked back - this series did not disappoint!


Arouse (Book 1)
In book 1, we're introduced to the poignant love story of Dean & Liv and their perfect marriage that is now on the road to falling apart.  Starting in the present, about a few years into their marriage, we learn who they are, and as the story continues, we learn their history through Liv's flashbacks.

At first, I thought the flashbacks were a bit confusing because there was no indication the time period was switching. One sentence we're in the here-and-now, next it's five years earlier but this could be because I read it on a Sony app and not an ereader.

Kelsey made the book! Her character and witty come backs

Nina lures you in and gets you hooked on Dean (oh, and Liv too) as they begin the trials and tribulations of marriage. Then BAM! A cliff hanger. Thank goodness book two was readily available!

I love how realistic Nina made Dean & Liv's marriage throughout the series: the arguments, the jealousy, the makeups,  and the separation. 

By book three you can't help but wonder how much more their marriage can withstand, or how fickle is Liv (I can leave you, but you can't leave me?!?).  Personally I was a little disappointed in the ending and how everything ended so quickly. Seemed almost anticlimactic or a typical "Hollywood ending"  

Release Day Launch: BETTER WHEN HE’S BAD by Jay Crownover

EXCERPT:

I let out the breath I was holding and took another step closer to her. The water was splashing on the sleeve of my shirt as I reached up to grab both of her cheeks in my palms. “Are you scared of me?”

It was the start of the questions I had asked her what felt like a lifetime ago. Her answer didn’t change, but this time when she answered, she was holding back a smile that made my heart hurt.

“Terrified, but I kind of like it now.”

“Do you trust me?” My voice broke. I had never really trusted anyone but Race and now there was her and my brother and just all kinds of new things making my life so much more complicated and undeniably fuller.

“With my life. I trust all the parts of you, Bax. You need to know that.”

 “You going to go to bed with me?” That made her outright laugh and she reached up to curl her hands around my wrists.

 “As often as I can and anyplace in between when the mood strikes.” The rest of the blood racing around my system went solidly south.

 

 I dropped my forehead so it was resting on hers and the water from the shower head was cascading down around us. I was making a mess, but I didn’t care because I had her, and she was my home. “Do you love me?”

The words sounded so foreign, but so right, when I was saying them to her. She brushed her full lips across mine and the last three months without her faded away.

“Do you want me to lie to you or tell you the truth?”

 I smiled against her mouth and kissed her back twice as hard as she had kissed me. “Lie to me.”

 She reached up and put her arms around my neck and took a step back, dragging me all the way into the shower stall with her. The water was lukewarm at best, and it made me shiver. So did the fact that she started to impatiently pull the tail of my shirt up over my head. A task made increasingly difficult considering I was now soaked head to toe and the material was clinging to me.

 “Of course not. You’re the last person in the world I could love.”

About BETTER WHEN HE’S BAD:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jay Crownover returns with a heart-stopping new series… Welcome to the Point.

There’s a difference between a bad boy and a boy who’s bad . . . meet Shane Baxter.

Sexy, dark, and dangerous, Bax isn’t just from the wrong side of the tracks, he is the wrong side of the tracks. A criminal, a thug, and a brawler, he’s the master of bad choices, until one such choice landed him in prison for five years. Now Bax is out and looking for answers, and he doesn’t care what he has to do or who he has to hurt to get them. But there’s a new player in the game, and she’s much too innocent, much too soft…and standing directly in his way.

Dovie Pryce knows all about living a hard life and the tough choices that come with it. She’s always tried to be good, tried to help others, and tried not to let the darkness pull her down. But the streets are fighting back, things have gone from bad to worse, and the only person who can help her is the scariest, sexiest, most complicated ex-con The Point has ever produced.

Bax terrifies her, awakening feelings she never thought she’d have for a guy like him. But it doesn’t take Dovie long to realize . . . some boys are just better when they’re bad.

BUY LINKS:

Amazon US ** iBooks ** Barnes and Noble ** Kobo

About Jay Crownover:

Jay Crownover is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men series. She will also be introducing the dark and sexy world of The Point in a new series this summer starting with Better When He’s Bad. Like her characters, she is a big fan of tattoos. She loves music and wishes she could be a rock star, but since she has no aptitude for singing or instrument playing, she'll settle for writing stories with interesting characters that make the reader feel something. She lives in Colorado with her three dogs.

Links:

Website ** Blog ** Facebook ** Twitter

BETTER WHEN HE’S BAD Goodreads ** Jay Crownover Goodreads