Straight Reading from the Library: Grant Me by Em Perna

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READ THE BLURB

Neva Mathews and Jason Grant came from seemingly different worlds. She is a tattooed, single mother of one and he is a hardboiled detective who has sworn off on relationships. But when they cross paths, attraction becomes inevitable and the two find themselves falling hopelessly and dangerously in love…

READ THE REVIEW

Take one widowed, tattooed and pierced single mom, add in one very macho, sexy alpha police detective, garnish with a bunch of thugs out to get her for some unknown reason, shake and enjoy.

After an exciting prologue, we start the book a few weeks earlier. When we first meet Neva, she tells us all about her appearance. I'm not fond of this type of introduction (I remember Kinsey Milhone did it at the beginning of the first book in that series). Yes, we get a good vision of what she looks like, but I prefer to have things revealed organically, over time. Also, prologue aside, the first several pages are really a "meet and greet" for Neva, her bestie and roomie, Shelley and Neva's son. However, once the book actually gets moving (around chapter three), things take off and never slow down. Don't be mislead by the easy pace at the beginning.

At first I wasn't sure what to make of Jason. Crazy stalker or amazing protector? He kept turning up everywhere, and even though I knew he was the hero and love interest for the book, I was reserving judgment. He's also exceptionally pushy and alpha, and while that sometimes got my back up, it was absolutely perfect for Neva who was, I think, tired of being strong all the time. Still, over time it became clear his affection was honest and I really loved his interactions with Neva's son.

The suspense was good, too, though I knew immediately what the "mystery" thing was the moment it was introduced. I'm a huge mystery fan, and it's not always easy to hide things from me. I also thought Neva had a few "too stupid to live" moments in the middle when she can't decide what to do or who to trust, but she does what she does to protect the people she loves, so I'm willing to accept the deeds as they were intended. Indeed, Neva has one of the biggest hearts I've ever seen, and that is clear in how her friends love her right back.

Ultimately, this ended up being the type of book I wanted to keep reading because I liked the characters. Snarky but kind, Shelley was my favorite. Everyone should have a friend like her. And the romance is hot, hot, hot. Poor Jason and Neva can't keep their hands off each other, even though they know they have no business being involved. Also, the authors writing style is easy and fun to read. It's not stilted or forced, and the editing was quite good, so I wasn't pulled out of the story for grammar errors or typos, which is a big deal for a grammar nerd like me.

A good book that I enjoyed, and I look forward to the next one (foreshadowed in the epilogue in this book).

4 stars

READ AN EXCERPT

I absently wipe my face before answering. Hmmm, how best to drop this bomb? "Well, after work last night I may, or may not, have been shot at.”

"WHAT??!! What are you talking about? And why didn’t you call me when this happened?” Ok, maybe I should have eased into that statement.

I hold both my hands up in front of me. “Shhh. Do you want Drew to hear you? I'm fine. I'm actually not sure why I was shot at. That's why Detective Grant was bringing me home. He and three other officers came to the club and questioned us after it happened, and he offered to bring me home. Seriously, I was fine and I didn’t want to wake you for something I was planning on telling you when I got home.” I throw her a sheepish expression. “Except, I guess I passed out on our way here. Did you say he carried me? Oh, by the way, do you know if my car made it back?"

"Yes, your keys are on the hook in the kitchen.” A sarcastic one quickly replaces her look of concern. “And yes to being carried. It was like ‘damsels in distress gone wild’ in here.” She goes mute, while she rolls the information I dropped on her around in in her mind. 


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Em Perna is a sarcastic 35 year old with a penchant for hot pink hair. She was born in sunny Florida, but has moved several times, while following her husband as he advances in his career. When she’s not writing, she’s kept quite busy by being a wife, a boo-boo kisser, a football team mom, a dog walker, teacher of ABC’s, home chef, chauffeur, and a Superhero’s personal assistant.

She’s an avid reader, but prefers a romance novel above all others.

Links: Link for interview on Fox 5:

http://beta.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view?12693159/token/0d467fad-c681-4229-a6c2-86d0a5061e69

AUTHOR LINKS:

Website: http://www.emperna.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EmPerna

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9798854.Em_Perna

B & N http://bit.ly/1yUbxky

Amazon http://amzn.to/1rXOMGP

Authorhouse http://bit.ly/1sP2oe1

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