CRASH (The Outlaw Series) by Nicole James

CRASH

(The Outlaw Series #2)

by Nicole James

Release: March 14, 2014

My rating: 5 of 5 ⭐️

It's been years since rich girl, socialite Shannon was rescued by the Evil Dead MC from the hands of sex slave traders, but she can think of no one else who can help her when she finds herself on the run from a boyfriend who won't take no for an answer. Terrified, Shannon holds back the full details of her predicament and covers up her emotions with her best armour....her rich bitch attitude.

When his best friend and Evil Dead VP, Cole, directs 'Crash' Shaw to play babysitter for the snooty little rich bitch, Shannon, Crash is less than impressed. But when he spots small flashes of genuine fear break through the girl's abbrasive attitude, he wonders if there might be more to her story than she has let on. In the mean time, he is going to enjoy bringing Shannon and her haughty behaviour down a notch or two.

In return for Crash' protection, Shannon is told she is expected to cook and clean and do some honest work for a change. Stuck in his house, and at his mercy, Shannon has very little choice, but she doesn't give in quietly. Living with Crash does afford her a closer look at what she had assumed to be simply another rude and violent biker, but instead she finds more depth and substance to her protector than she expected.

Although Shannon proves as much of a handful as Crash had anticipated, there were more layers to the troublemaker than are visible on the surface, and most of those layers turn out to be very appealing. Crash finds his body and his instincts responding to her, before his mind has a chance to catch up with what is happening, but it becomes clear that he is falling for his charge. 

If only she would tell him the secrets he knows she is still keeping, before somebody gets seriously hurt......

****

I absolutely freckin' adored this book!! Loved the characters, the chemistry, the brotherhood, the humour,  Crash is TO DIE FOR, and the contrast and tension between Shannon and Crash is perfection. It creates just the right amount of friction to set off some serious sparks!!

I love the nice substantial read, which has lots of tempo changes I like. It gave this book an interesting flow, one where you can't quite predict whether you are going to encounter action, hot sex, or a spot of humour next. The whole providing a constant level of alertness and fraction of surprise. 

The relationship between the substantially damaged Shannon and the hardened Crash was most definitely not an insta-love affair. In fact, they start out as antagonistic as you can get, with a genuine dislike for the other. And even as the story progresses, they each have a hard time accepting the attraction they feel for the other. 

I very much enjoyed the way the relationship was allowed to develop through all the ups and downs in a more 'organic' way than is normally the case in romance novels. The unique aspect was that it didn't seem life stopped with Shannon and Crash, other events kept occurring around them and life obviously continued on. Where so often it appears that a story, especially a romantic story, happens in a void of sorts.

THAT was a huge plus!! It allowed for a better insight in the characters and it gives the reader an opportunity to 'grow' with them. 

Even though I feel CRASH, just as OUTLAW, is a standalone novel, which can be read by itself, it is more beneficial to read it as part of the series. Simple reason is this; In a series, there is a larger backstory, one that usually involves a large group of character, who may appear in one, some, or all of the books and parts of their stories could be told in different novels. Just like in this book, a small part of Shannon's story was told in OUTLAW, and although we get a brief recap of what happened in CRASH, I am personally glad I read book #1 first. Same is true for some new character introductions and developments we encounter in CRASH, that are part of the bigger 'backstory', these will undoubtedly come back in a future novel in this series.

This is the 3rd book written by Nicole James I have read, and I adore her writing style. She won me over with OUTLAW, showed me her versatility with RUBY FALLS, and proves her consistent quality with CRASH! 

✨A steamy, stirring and sensational story of layers exposed.✨

**beta-read**

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