Bound (Mastered #1) by Lorelei James

UPDATE: So. Lorelei decided my review on Amazon (one without the swearing) was malicious and has asked multiple groups to vote my review unhelpful. If you like my review. Found it helpful, etc. I'd appreciate an upvote on Amazon. 

My Amazon Review. And, hell, it was nicer than the one here! smh

I've left the original review as it was posted on 2/2/14 ratings and all. At this point though I'd not recommend this book or any others by Lorelei James. She won't be an author whose books are welcome in my home from here on out.

Former small-town girl Amery Hardwick is living her dream as a graphic designer in Denver, Colorado. She’s focused on building her business, which leaves little time for dating—not that she needs a romantic entanglement to fulfill her. When her friend signs up for a self-defense class as part of her recovery after an attack, Amery joins her for support. That’s where she meets him.

Ronin Black, owner of the dojo, is so drawn to Amery that he takes over her training—in public and in private. The enigmatic Ronin pushes Amery’s boundaries from the start, and with each new tryst, Amery becomes addicted to the pleasure and to him. But when Amery senses Ronin is hiding something, she questions her total trust in him, despite the undeniable thrill of his possession….

Type: Erotic Romance
Heat: 4 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5
Cover: Not a fan. I really loath the non-covers

Amazon | All Romance | Book Depository | BAM | Goodreads

**This is gonna be a weird review--two parts. Because I loved the book but damn it left me pretty ranty in the end. But first..the good bits...

Pretty much--Lorelei James is amazing. She can weave an erotic romance in a way that pulls you in and has you completely captivated like no one else. And Bound was an incredible example of that talent. From page one I was all in.

The gist: Amery takes up a self defense class in support of her girlfriend and winds up catching the attention of the seriously sexy Master Black who can't seem to keep away from her. And yummy, delicious, naughty things follow...

There was something about these two that I just connected with. Their relationship was great but it was them as individuals too. I'm the first to admit I am hard on my heroines. I expect more from them. So saying Amery was amazing really means something. And I loved this chick. The way she thought, how she reacted to things, how she dealt with her screw ups and how passionate she was without even realizing it. Total girl crush.

And Ronin. Ah he's a deliciously frustrating man that's incredibly powerful and deadly. He's sensual and graceful and could make ya agree to ALL sorts of naughty things without even trying. He does hold a lot of things close to the chest. Which even though he's hot as hell and all kinds of amazing could really drive a girl to pinch the snot out of him. But still love him at the same time. Yeah, I know. But he managed it. lol

"Since I won, I get to pick what we do tonight. Have any idea what that might be?"

Please say hours of hot, raunchy sex.

Ronin's eyes narrowed. "Did you say something?"

"Uh. No." Thank god she hadn't said that out loud, but she half suspected he'd read her mind. "What are we doing?" she asked quickly. "I hope it involves food."

I enjoyed watching these two together as they tried to figure out their attractions, boundaries and each other. They're an interesting pair. I loved the reactions they brought out in each other--I cracked up so many times at how they flustered each other-- and enjoyed the tension filled moments too when things weren't going so perfectly. And, damn me, the sex scenes are scorching hot throughout. So would not mind being tied up by Ronin. Nope. Not at all. It was. Just. Real nice. Whew! Yeah.

Bound was really an amazing read. From characters to setting to the sensual qualities of the relationship. The drama with friends and even between Ronin and Amery now and again. It all worked incredibly well and pulled me in completely. It was just fun to read and had me alternatively smiling and panting after these two. And it really had all the makings for a 5 star read. Other than the fact that at the end of the book I was sent into full out rant mode. Which brings us to part 2 of the review...

**Part 2**

And there's a spoiler so be warned.

So, I had a couple small issues--the cover which is just--I'm tired of the non-covers happening. And a heavy helping of typos/editing blips the first half of the book (I had a finished copy so fully "edited") . Both are annoying to me but deal-able.

But then the big issue. And with that I'm officially taking off my *proper* blogger hat and gonna rant. Because let me tell you. I was fucking PISSED on the last page of this book. It's a cliffhanger.

*taps fingers*

I nearly threw the fucking book across the room I was so ticked off. I really really do not like this new trend of cliffhangers/serial publications that have no warning. At nearly 400 pages and 15 bucks there's no HEA. There's not even a HFN when the book ended. They're broken up and things are shit. Book 2 of their story comes out end of March. For another 15 bucks. That's really hard to swallow when you're expecting a full story in one book. Even for a book that was as incredible as this one. I get this is the trend now but there needs to be a clear warning on the book that you're going to have to invest not just extra funds but extra hours to actually get the complete happily ever after. So this was taken down to a 4 star and that was pretty generous with how pissed off I was when finishing this book. How annoyed I still am more than a week later. A warning of some sort really would have been appreciated. So grrs and args!

I so don't like leaving the review on a negative note because really this was an incredible read. The flow, the characters, the story. I loved it. I just absolutely hated the way it was delivered in the end.