ASIN: B00CX5V74I
ISBN-13: 978-0698141254
Publisher: Penguin Group
Line: Intermix
Release Date: Sep 17, 2013
Pages:
Digital Retail: 3.99
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Genre: New Adult
Heat Level: Hot
Rating:
In this powerfully emotional debut New Adult novel, Avery has just met her hot upstairs neighbor. He’s irresistible. Tattooed. And a virgin.
Nursing student Avery Michaels wants nothing to do with dating—she’s perfectly happy single. Privy to too many of her mother’s bad decisions and even worse taste in boyfriends, all Avery can handle is a string of uncomplicated hookups whenever the mood strikes.
When she meets smoking hot tattoo artist Bennett, she wants him—for just one night. But he won’t accept a no-strings-attached arrangement. He lives by a straight-laced code of values based on his own troubled upbringing.
Bennett sees something special in Avery and he wants more from her. Way more. As Avery wrestles with her emotions for Bennett, danger and tragedy force them to open up to each other. And Avery must face the terrifying realization that she wants more from him, too.
So she needs to make a choice—let Bennett go or finally let him in.
Review
All of You is one of those books that made me sigh. Sigh because it was so good. Sigh because it was not what I expected—and I mean that in a good way. Sigh because it gave me the HEA I wanted.
Avery Michaels doesn’t do relationships because her mother’s taste in men has left a lasting impression. One in particular. So when she sees Bennett Reynolds (“Hot Boy”) at a party, she’s not thinking long-term, she just wants a casual hook up for the night. Bennett, however, doesn’t appear the least interested in what she has to offer. Oh well.
Not so fast. Who do you think moves into the apartment above hers? Yep, “Hot Boy” himself. So now they’re neighbors. And Avery discovers the attraction she feels for him isn’t one-sided. There’s only one problem, Avery only does casual and not only doesn’t Bennett do no-strings casual but he’s a virgin and he’s only giving it up for a serious relationship.
Truthfully, I’m not into hero virgin stories. I was almost positive I wasn’t going to like this book. Oh how wrong I was. Bennett may be a virgin but he’s a hot and sexy hero. Furthermore, he’s a great guy. Yeah, he’s had a pretty crappy home life—like Avery—but he comes out of it more mature, more caring and responsible than most twenty-one year old guys.
I liked Avery much more than I thought I would. Promiscuity—and yes I know it’s a double-standard—in heroines is a sore point with me. And I guess that’s because I expect more from women when it comes to sex. I expect us females to be a little more fastidious with whom we share our bodies. That said, I got Avery, I really did. I get who she is and why she does the things she does. And I get why she doesn’t want to let Bennett get too close.
What was great about her was watching as her guards came down. Not far into the book, casual sex with her semi-regular hookup, Rob, is no longer appealing. She’s a truly sweet girl. You see that in her interactions with Mrs. Jackson at the nursing home. You see that in the way she is with Bennett. You see it in how protective she is of her younger brother.
Together Bennett and Avery make a great couple. They so belong together. And although they don’t have sex until the end, their make-out sessions are pretty hot. Bennett may be a virgin but the boy has got skilz. Virginity in this case doesn’t mean inexperienced. So All of You definitely gets a huge thumbs up and I'll be looking out for more books from Christina Lee.
Reviewed by Beverley