Review: Say When by Tara West

Title: Say When
Series: Something More 1
Author: Tara West
Publisher: Indie Inked

Amazon | Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble| Goodreads

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Goodreads Synopsis:
He told me to say when, but I can’t. Not with Andrés. It’s so hard to say anything when he’s trailing feather soft kisses down my neck, or when his touch sends hot currents of lust rippling across my skin. 

Then there’s the way he smiles and offers soft words of encouragement when I’m creating art, almost like he believes I have talent. 

He’s not like any guy I’ve ever met. Not like my ex-fiancé. Not like my father. He’s got me thinking that maybe we can have something more. More than just lust, degradation, and abuse. 

And now I’m scared, because that means I’ll have to trust him with more than just my body, but with my heart, too.
Christina Duval

What I thought:
I really wanted to like the story, I love a story about a broken and battered soldier coming home from overseas, but this one just get to me.

First off, the synopsis just doesn't make the book justice. She doesn't dwell on the fact that it can me more than just "lust, degradation and abuse". The first two comes up once or twice, the third one isn't mentioned in context with Andrés at all.  And she can't not say when, she does and it takes her one page to do that. ONE!

I love the idea of this book more than I like the actual book. There is no build up, it's all laid out right in front of you and there is nothing held back. The reader get to know things about a character in a very direct way pages and pages before the other character finds out. You never get to know the characters bit by bit, you're just given an info dump and are told how they are and how they act. There's to way to get a connection to them.

They're both supposedly broken and haunted by their pasts but that doesn't come through to the reader. He suffer's nightmare, but you never get a descriptive view of that. He doesn't wake up with a racing pulse in cold sweat but it's just told that he has them. She has trust and abandonment issues, understandably, and is pictured like this very fragile being who acts strong. Yet she trusts Andrés after she's spent just five minutes with the guy and she does't not trust every other guy she meet, except from her so called best friends sleazeball "boyfriend".

I can live with the insta-lust, I don't like it but I can live with it. The insta-love isn't spelled out, but that's what it is and that's something I can't live with. He's not like other guys she's met and she's subconsciously both drawn to him and running from him because she's terrified. I get it. But they're just too perfect together. The haven't had a fight, not even an argument in the entire book. It's insta-perfect-love. Sorry, but that's a huge turn off.

I like the idea of this book and the general plot, the very general plot, but nothing more than that.

My rating:

About the author:
A former Texas high school teacher, I enjoyed coaching the writing team and even the hectic deadlines that came with running the school publications. After taking a break to raise my baby girl, I now work from home as a cover artist.

In my spare time, I loves to read, exercise and spend time with family and friends. I contribute the cover art for my Whispers Series and have designed covers for over 500 other books.

To reach Tara, contact her here through Goodreads or by any method below!

Website: http://www.tarawest.com 
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tarawestauthor
Twitter: @TaraWestauthor