A REVIEW BY WENDY
The Blurb: Fate hasn't always been friends with Isabelle West. In fact, fate has been a downright bitch. Isabelle has learned the hard way how hard life can be when fate isn't by your side. It can hand you dreams on silver platters, but it can snatch them right back and hand you nightmares. One thing Isabelle knew for sure fate was consistent with was taking away everything she ever loved. For the last two years Isabelle has been slowly clearing the clouds of her past. Happiness is finally on the horizon. She has a thriving business, great friends, and her life back. All she has to do is jump over the last hurdle...her ex-husband. When problems start causing her to fear her new life, and memories that are better left forgotten start rushing to the surface the last thing she needs is a ghost from her past to come knocking on her door. Axel never thought he would look into the eyes of Isabelle West again, and he wasn't sure he wanted to now. He's carried his anger for so long he isn't sure he can just turn it off, but when he is faced with protecting her and an unexpected desire to have her again, life gets a little more complicated.
Axel by Harper Sloan is an Alpha Male book with a capital A and M. She has created a series of Corps Security to house all of her men and they represent well. There are many alphas waiting for their books and I know all of them will fit the genre perfectly to a tee.
This series introduction has two characters with damaged pasts. It must be stated this story has domestic violence as a major feature. We first meet Izzy as she is rushing to get home and have the dinner on the table for her husband. We feel her panic, anticipate what will happen if everything isn't perfect and experience the horrific outcome of her not meeting his demands. During the abuse, Izzy clings to the thought of Axel, her first love. While she lays bleeding and broken, she calls her best friend Dee to rescue her.
Axel met Izzy in high school. He was in a foster home determined to make a positive life for him and his "Princess", Izzy. Both were madly in love and felt they would be together always. Axel joined the service; knowing this would be their future together.
But Fate had another idea.
Izzy's parents die in a car crash while Axel is away and she must move to her grandparent's home in another state. Axel is chosen to serve in a deep cover operation during the service which means no communication to anyone for the time away. Both of these events cause the basis of these lovers to be separated for years.
Two years pass and Izzy is on her path to becoming more of whom she was before her destructive marriage and she fights everyday to be strong and overcome her past insecurities with the help of Dee and new friend Greg.
This story needs for the reader to accept all that is presented to them in order to experience it as it was intended. Life happens; we make snap decisions and judgments without all of the facts. This story has a lot of that.
I am someone who loves to start a book; "become the book" and put myself into the story through the characters. I like to keep an open mind and take in everything as it is presented. By being relatively new to the romance genre, I have sampled all different types of styles and it has been enlightening.
As I have read many of these books, I have been reminded not all people converse the same. Alpha males have their own way of communicating. They can be abrupt, direct, sarcastic and grammatically questionable.
But there is one thing they all have in common; they know how to talk about sex, sexual acts and how they are going to do them. They describe in great detail the feasting, licking, sucking, caressing, thrusting and over all fucking they will do to their girl. And as a reader, I say thank you.
Axel fits the proto type of the man who loves his woman, claims her, and will not rest if she is in trouble. He also is a sexual machine. There is never a time when he is not aroused or wanting and there are some very steamy times.
There is no cliffy and the series will continue with plenty of men to fill the Alpha void. Overall, it was an entertaining read. I already know Cage is the next man to claim his woman and my Kindle is ready.
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