I received this book for free from the library in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: the library
Fever
by
Maya Banks
erotic romance in Paperback edition that was published by Berkley on April 2, 2013 and has 416 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Sweet Surrender, Colters' Woman, Sweet Persuasion, Sweet Seduction, In Bed with a Highlander, Darkest Hour, Seduction of a Highland Lass, Colters' Lady, No Place to Run, Men Out of Uniform, Red-Hot Summer, Never Love a Highlander, Brazen, Sweet Temptation, Whispers in the Dark, "Colters' Wife", Colters' Promise, Echoes at Dawn, Undone By Her Tender Touch, Four Play, Cherished, The Tycoon's Pregnant Mistress, Never Seduce a Scot, Highlander Most Wanted, "Softly at Sunrise", Shades of Gray, Rush, Forged in Steele, Burn, Colters' Daughter, Colters' Gift, Be With Me, When Day Breaks, After the Storm, Taking It All, Keep Me Safe, Darkest Before Dawn, Enticed by His Forgotten Lover, Sweet Possession, Sweet Addiction
Second in the Breathless erotic romance trilogy. The couple focus is on Bethany Willis and Jace Crestwell, and it’s set in Manhattan.
My Take
There are two layers of writing to Fever: a sweet and emotional surface with no depth and a massive dose of melodrama which includes people leaping to conclusions faster than a speeding bullet. Oy… It’s just another embarrassing story from Banks, although I do think this one is slightly better than Rush, 1. But, hey, at least she’s being consistent in this particular series.
On the surface, this is a Cinderella tale with a blunt approach from Ash and a unique response from their target with Jace as the very dominant Prince Charming. Banks is subtle in the beginning with the hints she drops of Bethy’s hurts, but quickly descends with Jace’s insta-love and panicky need to take her alone, without Ash. A need that Ash just doesn’t grasp until it’s too late.
There’s a sense of the rushed in this — hmmm, maybe Banks is channeling the first in this series?? — as Jace freaks out about everything in this story. I do commend his desire to do right, but jesus, he’s a big boy now and depicted as an intelligent man. Surely he could take a moment to think!
Banks also preps us for Ash’s story; his family is going to be a nightmare to meet.
Fever will pull at your heartstrings, make you cry, and the HEA, is, as always, sweet. You just have to survive the excessive histrionics and exaggerated characters.
The Story
Circumstances, despair, and addiction have put Bethany where she is, and she’s doing her best to rise above it all and bring Jack with her.
Only, Jace Crestwell finds her first.
The Characters
Bethany Willis is homeless, struggling to survive and to protect her brother-through-hardship, Jack Kingston. A boy, now a man, who stood up for her, protected her from predators. A man deeply involved in wrong with his own painful secret.
Jace Crestwell and Ash McIntyre are best friends and family with Gabe; they also regularly partner up for a threesome. It’s a rare night when they’re one-on-one with a woman. Until Bethany.
Gabe Hamilton is deliriously happy with Mia, Jace’s sister (see Rush). Together, the three of them, best friends for years — Jace, Ash, and Gabe — have created a business empire of hotels, making the three of them very wealthy men, albeit dominant, controlling ones. They are also family for each other.
Mia’s friends — Caroline, Chessy, Gina, and Trish — pop in for a girls’ night out. Brandon, Caroline’s boyfriend, is a bouncer at Vibe.
Kaden Ginsberg and Trevor Dixon are the security team Jace hires for Bethy’s protection. Roger is Jace’s doorman.
Catching up…
Gabe’s parents are back together.
The Cover and Title
The cover is gorgeous in its simplicity. A frozen wedge of ice dripping in the heat of the Fever that encompasses Jace and Bethany.
