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My Review:Title: Stripped
Author: Zoey Castile
Series: Happy Endings #1
Published by: Novel Audio
Release Date: September 4, 2018
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Carmen Vine, Jacob Morgan
Length: 8 hours and 24 minutes
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Source: Hoopla
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2020 Audiobook Challenge, Lenoreo's 2020 Beat the Backlist Challenge, Lenoreo's 2020 Diversity Reading Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ Kobo ✩ iTunes ✩ Libro.FM
My rating:
Blurb:Skilled, sculpted, and sexy, the men of adult entertainment are the kind of guys a woman reserves for her fantasies, not her reality. But is there more to these professional hotties than meets the eye?
The day Robyn Flores meets Zac Fallon is one of those days. You know, when you’re already late for work. Mostly because you haven’t really slept since your best friend abandoned you for her fiancé and her exponentially better life. The kind of day you drag yourself to the cleaners to pick up your laundry, only to discover you’ve got the wrong bag - Star Spangled sequined thong, anyone? So Robyn is definitely not ready for the ridiculously gorgeous guy at her front door, except that they have each other’s clothes. But then, is any woman ever ready to meet the love of her life?
There’s just one problem: Zac Fallon is not the love of Robyn’s life. Zac knows, despite the all-too-intimate dinner they share, he doesn’t have a shot at her. Because the next time Zac sees Robyn, he’s front and center of the male revue headlining her best friend’s bachelorette party. So much for wooing the pretty schoolteacher, much less impressing her old-fashioned family, with his upstanding lifestyle. Now he’s only got one way to win his dream girl. It’s gonna be the steamiest, most irresistible seduction she’s ever seen. And this time, it will be no act....
3.5 stars — I think if I hadn’t been reading this for my Diversity challenge, I might have just DNF’d. And that doesn’t mean the book was bad, just that I think it wasn’t for me. It took me almost a whole month to read this one, I just didn’t reach for it.
The narrators were pretty good. I’ve listened to Jacob Morgan before, and there are some aspects of him I love, and others less so. I’m not always a fan of his female voices, but they were tolerable in this one. Mostly he just sounded very resigned…which, I don’t know if that exactly fit Zach. This was my first listen of Carmen Vine, and she was pretty solid. I ADORED listening to her accent on Spanish words, it really made the experience more authentic. Her voices were pretty solid, and her emotion was good. I’m not sure what made her good but not great…will have to try her again and see if it was the book influencing.
As for our characters, I…don’t know. Fallon initially comes across SUPER self-absorbed and cocky. But that’s really mostly just the first section in his POV. Afterwards he gets more caring, more sweet, more romantic. It made it slightly hard to figure out who he really is. I was NOT a fan of his anger, no matter how justified. I’m just not a girl who’s going to like a guy who fights unless her life is in danger. I’m also not sure I quite got the whole stripping thing. I mean, that’s not quite right. I did to a degree. We’re told he loves the attention, but I only sort of saw that. I don’t know…something just didn’t connect for me there.
Robin was an intriguing character. I will admit that while I was glad Fallon recognized what was going on with her, I was sad that the solution wasn’t to maybe talk to someone. I feel like that was a missed opportunity, and I was disappointed. And part of the reason I was disappointed is that what was going on with her really made her kind of a crappy friend, and yet her friend never got to know what was going on with her…if that makes sense. So she really just looks like a crappy friend, instead of the alternative (and yes, I’m being vague…I don’t even know why).
As for the two of them together? Yeah, they definitely had chemistry, and there was a lot of steam. I feel like I sort of got to see their connection beyond just lust, but there was a LOT of lust. And I’m this super weird person that needs more than physical attraction to really get excited about a love story. Which, is misleading…they did have more. I just…I don’t know, wanted more I guess.
I enjoyed Fallon’s family, both original and made. The boys were pretty funny, and it was an interesting peek into what it might be like as a stripper.
I could have done with less of Lucas.
Yeah, I don’t know…I enjoyed it, but it was also missing something for me. It might even be just a straight 3 star, but I want to give it the bump, so I’m giving it the bump.
Sorry you didn’t enjoy this one more. I read it when it was released and remember liking it. I went on to read the next two books. I wasn’t a huge fan of the second, but I think I liked the third. I obviously don’t remember them well, so maybe that says something? Anyways. Great review!