Review: CRAVE by Adriana Locke (New Release)
BLURB Hadley Jacobs is over Machlan Gibson.
Sure, she’ll always be a little weak to the dimple in his right cheek and the way his five o’clock shadow makes him ruggedly handsome. But that’s not enough to cover every other thing about him because they all drive her nuts. Like how he’s won’t admit he’s wrong even when he knows it and how he drives his stupid car a million miles an hour on wet asphalt. As she rolls back into town and takes a seat at Crave, she won’t take the bait. She’s over him. Mostly.
Machlan isn’t over her.
It’s not because he hasn’t tried. He reminds himself over and over that she’s not the girl for him. After all, she drives him insane with her sassy attitude and the way she calls him out on everything. She beats him at poker, even though she doesn’t know the difference between a straight and a flush, and when she looks at him with her bright, blue eyes, it’s unnerving. When she climbs onto that bar stool and orders a drink, he puts it in front of her and ignores the sparkle in her eyes. He’s not over her, but she won’t know that.
But she does know that. And he knows she’s not as over him as she’s pretending to be. When life forces their hand this time, there’s more on the line than a pile of poker chips. It’s their forever.
Crave is a standalone romance in a new small town, blue-collar series from USA Today bestselling author Adriana Locke. Join readers everywhere as they fall in love with the delicious Gibson Boys.
Keep up-to-date by visiting the author’s website: www.adrianalocke.com.
GOODREADS LINK: http://bit.ly/CraveGR
PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2QkGg8N
Free in Kindle Unlimited
Audible: Coming soon!
MY THOUGHTS
Crave was a quick and easy read. I had mixed feelings about the romantic pairing, but I did love the family dynamics and the going-ons happening around them. Machlan was a character I couldn't quite figure out my feelings for. In part, I liked him. He was loyal, good looking, hard working… and protective. Now being protective is usually a positive quality to me, but Machlan was next level. There were many times I felt as though he were protective to the point of being overbearing. He treated Hadley as though she were a child, having her escorted everywhere, running off every male who spoke to her, making sure she wasn't drinking (she's neither underage or an alcoholic), and basically scolding her when she didn't listen. Now he may believe those are things someone who really cares about you does, but I had more of the thought that someone with control issues behaves this way. It was too much. I also didn't quite understand the tobacco chew thing. It was pointed out Machlan took a tin of chew from his pocket at least 5 times in the story, but he never once actually used it. What was the point? Anyway, moving on to Hadley. Her I connected to a little more. She was kind, sweet, and a little feisty. There was a lot of tension and angst between her and Machlan. Their connection was developed really well, you could feel the heat between them with every interaction, but they continually had that love-hate thing going on. I really felt sorry for Hadley at times, and on occasion I felt she was allowing herself to be his doormat. She was so in love with Machlan, but he just couldn't get past his insecurities and doubts. Even though he cared for her, he was just stringing her along and hurting her. I seriously wanted to knock him upside the head a number of times and tell him to stop being such a damn fool! What really kept me turning the pages of Crave was the stellar cast of secondary characters. Their constant banter and interactions are what made the story entertaining. Peck especially stole the show for me, and I can't wait to read his story. In the end, there were elements of the story I enjoyed more than others. I love Adriana's writing and this world she's built, Crave just wasn't my favourite in the series.
Colleen
ALSO AVAILABLE IN THE SERIES
#1 Crank
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2xSOyOo
Free in Kindle Unlimited
Audible: http://bit.ly/CrankAudible
#2 Craft
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2P2w7xc
Free in Kindle Unlimited
Audible: https://adbl.co/2DLxvmR
#3 Cross
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Op5SnD
Free in Kindle Unlimited
Audible: https://adbl.co/2zJ5w3i
AUTHOR BIO USA Today Bestselling author Adriana Locke lives and breathes books. After years of slightly obsessive relationships with the flawed bad boys created by other authors, Adriana has created her own.
She resides in the Midwest with her husband, sons, and two dogs. She spends a large amount of time playing with her kids, drinking coffee, and cooking. You can find her outside if the weather's nice and there's always a piece of candy in her pocket.
For sneak peeks, giveaways, and more, please join Adriana's Facebook Group, Books by Adriana Locke, or her Goodreads group, All Locked Up.
AUTHOR LINKS
Website: http://www.adrianalocke.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authoradrianalocke
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorALocke
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8379774.Adriana_Locke
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authoradrianalocke
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/authoradrianalo
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/adrianalocke
Facebook Group: http://bit.ly/BBALGroup
Goodreads Group: http://bit.ly/AllLockedUp
Newsletter: http://bit.ly/LockeList
