Title: Enzo
Series: Jinx Tattoos Book 1
Author: Shyla Colt
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: January 29, 2016
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book
for review from Enticing Journey Book Promotions, the publisher, and the
author. I was not compensated nor was I
required to write a positive review. The
opinions I have expressed are my own. I
am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part
255: "Guides Concerning the Use of
Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising".
Neglected, abandoned by a heroin-addicted mother, and placed in foster care at ten, Enzo Jordan has learned one thing…love hurts. At thirty-five, he has a successful tattoo shop and his choice of women. The one-night stands are getting old, and the love he holds for his best friend, Aibhlinn is impossible to hide. When the attraction between them reaches a boiling point, he's forced to choose between facing his fears and walking away.
Aibhlinn Leahy has been in love with her best friend for years. The Irish-born comic book artist has poured time, energy, and love into the wounded man. His choice to walk away breaks her heart but frees her to explore a new future.
Life is a cruel and amazing thing. An abandoned baby brings the two back together, and they’re forced to examine the love that has long existed between them. This is a story of pain, scars, and fear. We all have demons to battle. The real decision is who's in control…us or them?
My Thoughts:
The author was so good in her
descriptions, she had me disappointed in the fact that I was unable to see the
artwork that our two main characters create.
Now the author could have taken the easy road and left the story at
that. But she steps up her game by
adding in a surprise. Plus Ave finally
knows that she has to stick up for herself.
It’s interesting that others see what they don’t. It’s the tension between these two and their
little surprise that held my attention.
After watching several tattoo
shows on TV, I was hoping to see more of the shop but it’s possible we’ll see
more in subsequent books. Enzo has
several things going on in his life that have the possibility of changing
things between him and Ave. The only way
to know the outcome would be to keep reading.
Our author is very good at not divulging things before its time.
If you love a story where the bad
boy does good then you may want to check out this first book in the Jinx Tattoos series. How about a woman
who has reached her limit and issues an ultimatum? You should be able to tell the amount of
research this author may have done in order to be accurate about certain
things. The ending shows that you could
consider this book as a stand-alone. But
certain things are divulged that it may pull at your heartstrings. The only
thing I couldn’t find out for you is the next title and when it’s coming out. And my copy of Enzo gives no hints either.
PAST
If you told him a few years ago, he would go to the Prom and enjoy it, he would’ve laughed. Yet, here he was lounging on the bed watching television in the hotel room he and Aibhlinn had rented. Their friends had started off partying with them before bowing out to retreat to their own rooms or head on home.
She was still dressed in the blush pink gown that hugged her curves, and belled out into a skirt that brushed the floor. He’d ditched his tux jacket, unbuttoned his top buttons and rolled up his sleeves hours ago.
“We really are morbid you know,” Aibhlinn commented.
“Why?”
“Watching Carrie on prom night,” she said.
“Well, no one dumped pig’s blood on you, so I think we’re good.”
“The night’s still young,” she stated dryly.
Enzo laughed and shook his head. “Like I would ever let that happen.” He felt fiercely protective of his best friend. The girl had cracked opened his chest cavity, wormed her way into his heart…brought him kicking and screaming out of the darkness and into the light. She’d done something few people could, gained his trust. He studied her as she beamed.
Her blue-green eyes sparkled and he could see the small flecks of green inherited from her father. Her thick hair tumbled around her slender oval face in insane curls, and she glowed. Her full lips were tempting him. Bare of lipstick they glistened and glimmered a light shade of pink. Suddenly, he wanted to know what that lip-gloss tasted like, what she tasted like.
“Enz?” she said.
“Shhh.” He leaned forward and cupped her face.
She went still, but didn’t move away.
He took it as permission. He pressed their lips together, and his world exploded around him. She tasted like sugar, sweet, and addictive. He couldn’t get enough. He tilted his head for better accent and she gasped. He slipped his tongue into her mouth.
It was akin to sticking his tongue into a light socket full of pleasure endorphins. Energy rushed through him weaving a seductive spell. His pants grew too tight, and his hunger for more flared. She whimpered, and he moaned. The sound of her surrender tasted better than any of the pleasure filled cries he’d wrung from other girls.
His heart raced, and his hand shook slightly as he brushed her hair way from her face. It was baby soft and smelled like flowers. He’d fallen into heaven. He lowered her body to the bed. Pressed chest to chest, their eyes locked and he knew he was in way too deep. I love her. The words jolted him from his lust. He pulled back, breathing hard. “As good as this feels and as amazing as this would be with you, I just can’t. It would ruin what we have and if I ever lost you, I’d lose my mind. You’re the only female I can trust. I need you to stay that. Do you understand? It’s nothing against you, and everything for you. I’m a bastard and I know it. You deserve romance, flowers and a deep commitment. I can’t give you that, babe.”
“Who says it’s what I want,” she said.
Enzo smiled and brushed the stray strands of hair behind her ear. “It’s what every girl wants, whether they realize it or not. Trust me, I’m older and wiser.”
“Oh fuck you and your six months,” she said with s shaky laugh.
Her eyes looked glossy and he knew if he saw a mirror, his would be the same. If he’d been a better person, someone capable of love the way she deserved, he would’ve continued. He cursed the bitch of mother and the way she’d twisted his dark soul. She broke something inside him, he would never be able to fix. He rested his forehead against hers, and tightened his hold, knowing he would never again get to experience this level of intimacy with the one woman he loved as much as he was able to.
Shyla Colt grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, but has lived a variety of different places thanks to her wanderlust, interesting careers, and marriage to a United States Marine. She's always loved books and wrote her very first novel at the age of fifteen. She keeps a copy of her first submission letter on her desk for inspiration. After a lifetime of traveling, she settled down and knew her time had come to write. Diving into her new career like she does everything else, with enthusiasm, research and a lot of prayers, she had her first book published in June of 2011. As a full-time writer, stay at home mother, and wife, there's never a dull moment in her household.She weaves her tales in spare moments and the evenings with a cup of coffee or tea at her side and the characters in her head for company. A self-professed rebel with a pen. Her goal is to diversify romance as she continues to genre hop, and offer up strong female characters.
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