Yeah, I really don’t know know where to start with this one. It was truly unlike any romance I have read before. Anti-romance? I don’t know. But what I do know is that I loved it.

I was very unsure about it in the first few chapters. But as I read further, I understood why the set up needed to be the way it was and it made a huge difference in how I looked at Nine for the rest of the story.

(Here is where I add that this is the first of the series that I have read, so even though it is a standalone, I got the definite feeling throughout that there was backstory to be found. That being said, I’m glad that I hadn’t read any others, because the style and characters were all new, which added to my reading enjoyment).

Okay, back to the story. I thought it moved along at a rapid pace and I loved the interplay between all of the characters. There were a number of times where the notes in my Kindle were “HA!” “Funny” and variations thereof. And the backup singing “Boom Boom Pow” had me literally laughing out loud.

I liked the interplay between Nine and Lenny. I really enjoy when an author creates a palpable magnetism between the characters that can be felt through the pages.

I loved Bo. With everything going on around him, there’s no way he could be anyway but the way he was. My favorite was when he said that he was nine and listening wasn’t a strong point for kids his age. He gets it.

While we are on the subject of kids, the ending gutted me. I don’t want to give it away, but the mom’s speech in court was heart-wrenching. As someone who is adopted and knows that I was given up so that I would have an opportunity at a better life than my birth mother could give me….that speech touched me deeply.

My ONLY complaint is about the cover. It does not seem to be representative of Nine’s tattoos at all. When he unveils his main one, it has meaning to both him and Lenny. and it most certainly is NOT what is on the cover. That is disappointing.

Other than that, I enjoyed the book, and I know that I will enjoy reading the first eight books in the series.

Nine: The Tale of Kevin Clearwater by T.M. Frazier
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was one of the most interesting “romances” I have ever read. The hero is an anti-hero (he does lots of bad stuff), and the heroine is pretty much an anxiety-riddled alcoholic – but it all works to make one helluva story. In some ways, their flawed characters make them more real than the perfect pretty-boy billionaires and saucy ingenues that often populate romance novels. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that, it’s just a nice change every so often). I liked the plot, I liked the tension, both romantic and in general, and I really liked the twist that I didn’t see coming. For more thoughts on this “not-cute” romance, visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. I’m now going looking for the other stories involving these characters! This review was written based on a complimentary pre-release digital ARC of the book.

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