2 out of 4 stars
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Anna Simmons and Rafe Brown are about as opposite as two people can get. Anna is a rather portly, though beautiful, woman who is struggling to find her way in life. She has endured a lot of heartache, abuse and bullying in her short 20 years. She has finally caught the attention of a gorgeous boy at college and is loving the attention and the protection he provides. Rafe has just returned home from the Australian Army. He is buff, beautiful, focused, driven and determined, if not a little intimidating. Except for the fact that their mothers are good friends, what could possibly bring them together? However, when something tragic happens to Anna it is Rafe who comes running to protect her this time. His motives to help a complete stranger elude Anna, but she is willing to accept any help she can get. For some strange reason she trusts him intrinsically. Is there actually more to Rafe than meets the eye? Do they have more in common that she originally thought?
I really appreciate the fact that the main female character in the book isn't physically perfect as are most female characters in the romantic genre. In addition, she is not extremely smart or popular. She is someone who the average reader can relate to. Even without extreme beauty or a perfect slim body she is able to attract the attention of gorgeous men.
I also like the connection between the two main characters. I appreciate the stories Anna and Rafe have to tell independently, as well as the one they are weaving together. The tale Mr. Irwing is trying to share is heartbreaking, romantic, exciting and keeps you anticipating the next chapter. He ends the book at a perfect spot to entice the reader into the next book in the series. However, his storytelling has some flaws.
I find a few scenes in the book to be highly unbelievable. I can't imagine most people having an extremely traumatic experience and then voluntarily putting themselves in a very similar situation with different people in the same day. In addition, I can't understand how a crime could take place in the front of a college classroom and have all of the students in the room oblivious to the events.
I also found several scenes in the book to be unreasonably crude. I understand the need for sexual scenes and can even appreciate a book that borders on the pornographic. However, I feel that the story, especially the interaction between the two main characters, could be told without such shocking terms. The word choice reduces the relationship between Anna and Rafe from something special to something cheap.
I found a significant number of editorial errors in this book: missing quotations marks, misspellings, font inconsistencies, inconsistencies in information about the characters and missing words. I get the impression that this book was not professionally edited at all. The lack of editing was distracting from the story.
I give Heartaches - Bad Boy Vibes a rating of 2 out of 4 stars. The editorial errors could not be overlooked. In addition, the unlikely interactions by the main character and the crude word choice to describe the sexual encounters prevent me from giving this book more than 2 stars. However, I do like the overall story that Mr. Irwing is trying to tell and feel that he leads the reader into the next book in the series very well.
I believe this book would be most appreciated by a reader who hasn't experienced trauma in their life and can view this book with a slightly lighthearted attitude. If a reader is looking for a book with a deep storyline that is extremely realistic, this book is not for them. I will not be reading the next book in the series nor will I be recommending this book to my friends.
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Heartaches
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