Cynically Sweet (Booklikes)

I won a copy of this novel via a First Reads giveaway. I didn't quite know what to expect about this book when I first received it. Though, I was somewhat surprised and pleased with the outcome. Though I received this book free of charge, it is entirely my own opinion. This review may contain a few spoilers.

Reece Claremont, American royalty, has come to Columbia to help find her missing sister. Tori, the sister, had traveled here in the hopes to find a story to write about. That story happens to be about Juan Carlos, a drug lord. Pretty much as soon as Reese gets to Columbia, she's in trouble with a local gang and JB Saxton, a good looking stranger, is at her aid. Not only does he help her from the gang, he's taken it upon himself to help rescue Tori as well. Through their adventures together, they find feelings for each other.

The book is very easy to read and only took me an afternoon, on and off. The writing style is quick and snappy. The way that the author explains the backgrounds of the characters and events is interesting. The plot lines were quite interesting. There were a few that I didn't particularly enjoy. Personally, I didn't particularly like the sudden character appearance of Carter. In some places, it did seem kind of forced, as did his part to play in the plot. The other thing I didn't particularly enjoy was the ending to the Luis plot line; it just seemed so abrupt and left me wondering how ambitious he really was in the first place. I did kind of like the mystery aspect to the plot. Though some of the endings to each of the events were obvious (to me, at least), I did like to share the moment with the characters and find out how they felt at each twist and turn. The majority of the plot was written very well. I didn't think that any aspect stretched for too long; many went somewhat quickly, especially the scenes where we traveled through the jungle. Though it went quickly, I didn't think that it was a problem, though.

I liked the way the Reece had somewhat of a simple development within the story. She's a very strong woman, even in the presence of JB. Though she's scared at times, it's not unbelievable; they are legitimate things to be scared of and (in the plot) it's not to try and make her look weak in comparison to JB. When they're travelling through the jungle, for example, she doesn't complain at having to walk all day or that she'll need to bath in some lake. She knows what she's there for, to help JB find her sister, and she's set on that task. Going back to her character development, her main development in the novel is that she takes control of her family's business empire. It's quite an empowering plot points as she's not only trying to secure her future, she's trying to redeem the Claremont family name, which is a very honourable thing for her to do. Though several different people confessed feelings for her, I didn't feel as if the author was using Reece's beauty badly. Though she is a beautiful woman, Reece maintains dignity and grace. JB was just wonderful, I thought. He sort of reminded me of Ranger in the Stephanie Plum series, which I thoroughly enjoy. JB just has a warm attitude and is generally very easy going, I find. In a real life situation like the ones portrayed in the novel, I imagine that one might be easily annoyed by a female companion. However, JB keeps his patience and takes Reece under his wing. I found that both of their feelings and actions in the novel to be somewhat genuine. It just felt incredibly natural for them to be with each other and I'm really quite pleased with their relationship.

The ending was incredibly sweet and certainly made me smile. It was really somewhat heartfelt and I quite enjoyed it.

Overall, I was quite impressed with the book, given that I didn't originally know what to expect. Though there are some aspects I didn't particularly enjoy, upon completion of the book, I can certainly see why they were necessary within the plot line. I think this book is deserving of five stars. I will certainly endeavour to read more by this author in future.