Review: Combative By Jay McLean

We all play victims to our pasts; to the choices we make and the lives we create.

They define who we are.

And sometimes if we're lucky enough, the past stays where it belongs: in the past.

I'm not one of the lucky ones.

I never have been.

Because now the past is knocking on my door, offering deals I have no choice but to take… deals that will help bring justice—not just for me, but for my brothers.

The problem?

The deal is a ticking time bomb.

One I didn't know existed.

Tick.

Tock.

I am sitting here confused and wondering what in the ever loving hell did I just read.  I went into reading Combative thinking it would be one thing and ending it knowing it is something totally different and I am confused, kind of questioning did I really just read what I just read, and a doing a lot of cursing.  Yes I read the synopsis, obviously.  I think I am having a hard time because there are a whole lot of questions that I didn’t even come close to finding answers to, secrets, lies, and maybe a little pissy over the whole Ky having PTSD from serving in Afghanistan but nothing being followed up.

I have had a 50/50 love/hate thing going with this author, some of her books I really have liked and some I have put down never to finish again.  Combative is surprisingly somewhere in between for me.  I did like it, believe it or not with how this review is going so far, but I did.  I think I connected with Ky almost immediately, there is just something about him that calls out to you and makes you want to protect him and just show him love.  Madison however, does not draw those same feelings out from me.  I started out giving her the benefit of the doubt, thinking maybe she was sick and didn’t want to burden Ky, but the more secrets she kept, the more evasive change of subjects happening more frequently, and the fact that you just knew she was lying about something.  Unless she really redeems herself in the next book I doubt I will ever end up liking her character.

The secondary characters made the story more enjoyable as well especially when I got so confused about what was going on that I kept reading for them.  I want to get more of Jax and a certain Dr.’s history, I want to know more about Christine, I want more information on Jax and I want to know why Tiny seems to be more bark than he is bite.  I have been left with more questions than I have answers and while sometimes that can be a good thing, in this instance I am angry that we have to wait to find out what is the truth.  Will that stop me from reading the next book? No it won’t because I need those answers and the only way to get them is to read the next book when it comes out.  So why I didn’t love Combative, I am intrigued enough that I will be looking forward to the next book, I just hope it releases sooner rather than later.

Blog Tour: Where The Road Takes Me By Jay McLean

Chloe has one plan for the future, and one plan only: the road. She’s made a promise to herself: don’t let anyone in, and don’t let anyone love her. She’s learned the hard way what happens if she breaks her rules. So she’s focused on being invisible and waiting until she can set out on the road—her dream of freedom, at least for a little while.

Blake Hunter is a basketball star who has it all—everything about him looks perfect to those on the other side of his protective walls. He can’t let anyone see the shattered pieces behind the flawless facade or else all his hopes and dreams will disappear.

One dark night throws Chloe and Blake together, changing everything for Blake. For Chloe, nothing changes: she has the road, and she’s focused on it. But when the so-called perfect boy starts to notice the invisible girl, they discover that sometimes with love, no one knows where the road may lead.

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1AxvTEC

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1BYBqPP

Excerpt #1

Chloe lifted her gaze and locked it with mine. She shook her head again and groaned, “Fine.” Then she took off her shirt.

My jaw dropped.

My hands had touched her bare skin, the curve of her hips, and her tiny waist, but I’d seen her body only once, when she was in a bikini, and that had been for only a minute. But that was nothing compared to seeing her like this. Up close. So close her sports bra–covered breasts were just under my nose.

“Blake?” she whispered.

I struggled to take my eyes off her chest, but I finally made it to her face. She had her hair tied up in a messy knot on top of her head, like she often did. But a few strands were stuck on her neck and on her face . . . and a little sheen of sweat covered her arms and her stomach, her chest, her breasts . . .

“Blake,” she repeated, and I trailed my eyes back to hers again.

She pouted before she said, “Give me the ball?”

I shook my head and hid the ball behind my back.

She pouted again. “Please?” she whispered. Then a hint of a  smile broke through.

“Are you trying to seduce me into giving you my ball?”

Jay McLean is the author of the More Series, including More Than This, More Than Her, More Than Him and More Than Forever. She also has two standalones coming soon titled Where The Road Takes Me, and Combative.

Jay is an avid reader, writer, and most of all, procrastinator. When she's not doing any of those things, she can be found running after her two little boys, or devouring some tacky reality TV show.

She writes what she loves to read, which are books that can make her laugh, make her smile, make her hurt, and make her feel.

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For publishing rights (Foreign & Domestic) Film, or television, please contact my agent, Erica Spellman-Silverman, at Trident Media Group. 

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