Speak No Evil (Brotherhood #2)
by Jordan Ford
Rating: 4 stars
Blurb:
Kade Kingsley is sick of hiding out in the middle of nowhere.
He should be having a good time, partying and living it up, not playing bodyguard to his best friend’s runaway witness girlfriend.
When he decides to leave the mountainside he’s called home for the last two months, he promises to be careful. He knows the stakes are high, and he knows that the makeshift family he’s leaving behind is counting on him to come back.
What he doesn’t count on is getting mugged and left for dead.
And he definitely doesn’t count on being rescued by a girl with secrets of her own…secrets that rival his.As Julienne Bishop, a down-on-her-luck girl hiding from an abusive ex-boyfriend, nurses Kade back to health, an uneasy bond forms between them. They need each other, even if they don’t realize it, and even if they have a hard time accepting it.
Because danger is coming at them from both sides, and they must figure out if they can trust each other.
Before it’s too late.
My Review:
I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it
After reading the first book I could hardly wait to start the second book, but I have to admit I was a bit hesitant as well. Speak No Evil follows the point of view of Kade, who in the first book was my least favorite of the three boys, but he really grew on me in this book. Once I started reading I got sucked into the story and had to know how it ended. It has a low key suspense feel, where you just know things are going to go wrong at some point. But you’re not exactly sure when or how and you’re just waiting for that to happen.
While Kade was my least favorite of the three boys in book 1, he really grew on me in this book. And he really grows and changes as a person. He becomes more mature gradually, but at the start he was still the very charming guy who liked to have one night stands with hot girls. Then he meets Jules and he slowly changes. I really liked seeing the changes in his character and how she slowly fell for Jules. I also liked seeing him grow into his own while away and he came to appreciate his friends even more.
And Jules was a great female main character and a perfect fit for Kade. She was quiet, but she had so much heart inside of her, she cared a lot. I also liked how she loved to cook and I really have to try her Ambrosia Pie recipe, which was included at the end of the book! I also felt so bad for her what she had to go through at home before she ran away from it all, but even with that situation she had fond memories as well. She had fallen for the wrong prince and now is a bit bitter and doesn’t believe in knights or princes anymore, but she’s going to get proven wrong when she meets Kade.
This book is mainly a romance story, but there’s so much more. It’s about fighting for what you believe in, growing up and making difficult choices. It’s a tad unbelievable at times, but the way the author writes it makes it all seem possible. There’s also a bit of suspense, it’s not the main focus, but enough to keep you on your toes, waiting for the bad things to happen. I wasn’t too fond of the pregnancy plot line, but that’s probably because I am not really a baby person and couldn’t relate to that part. But it did make for an high stakes conflict and I did feel that Jules her behavior was believable and felt realistic.
I also liked how the book gets wrapped up well, there is a high tension scene that normally would be right at the end of the book, but this book continues onward and I actually liked that and how this book ended. Nicely wrapping up this story and setting the stage for the next book. I am glad we got to see a bit of Trey, Ana and Riley as well in this book. Although there’s a big part where you don’t see them, we meet some other great side characters there, like Keith, who was just such a good person. And I am so excited Riley his story is next!
To summarize: This was such a good read! A heartwarming slow building romance, a tad of suspense and characters you grow to care about. I have to admit I liked Kade the least of the three boys in book 1, but he really grew on me in this book and he changed a lot. I liked seeing his adjust his attitude towards life and mature a lot in this book. And seeing him fall for Jules was great. Jules this sweet girl who has been through a lot of difficult stuff and doesn’t believe in shining knights who come to her rescue anymore, so it takes her awhile to warm up to Kade. I liked the added touch of suspense and how at the end it got nicely wrapped up and a bit of set-up for book 3. All in all this was another great read and I didn’t want to stop reading once I started. I am looking forward to book 3!
You can also read my review on Goodreads and Amazon.
Glad the next book was as good as the first. I like that this is about more than romance with the other themes of the story. Sounds both characters are likeable and good for each other even if at first he wasn’t your favorite.
The mix between romance and other elements is so well done. And I liked how the author made me change my opinion of Kade with how he changed in this book.
Lola recently posted…Sunday Post #213
Another great review, Lola! The book that comes to mind where I change my view of a character is the small lost boy in The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin who attaches himself to Essun as she goes hunting for her daughter. Initially we think he’s such a poor little lost soul – only to discover that he’s something else entirely… Nicely done – but that’s one of the many reasons why it’s my alltime favourite read of 2016:)
sjhigbee recently posted…While the Morning Stars Sing
It’s neat when an author can change your mind about a character like that, where you think you have a character all figured out and then it turns out they are different after all.
A slow building romance is always the best ones for me. Those insta-love romances are a little hard to believe.
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I agree! Insta love can work depending on the book, but a slow building romance is the best.
That low key suspense feel can be fun. I like that kind of tension in books. And I’m glad that Kade ended up growing on you 🙂 It’s cool when you dislike a character at first but then you get to know them more or they grow and you end up liking them.
Oh, it looks like we have something else in common! I also don’t care for pregnancy or babies in books. I have read books that had that in them, but only either because I didn’t know it’d be part of the story or because I was interested enough in the other things in book. And it can add something interesting to the plot sometimes.
Anyway, it sounds like book had a lot of great depth to it. Great review 🙂
Kristen @ Metaphors and Moonlight recently posted…Discussion: Why I Love Book Playlists
This author does the low key suspense so well! And it was neat how Kade was my least favorite of these three, but he really grew on me in this book. It was great to see that change in him.
I was afraid people would found it weird that I mentioned that, so I am glad to find another person who didn’t care about pregnancy or babies. Same here, I will read books with it in it, if the books catches my attention, but it’s not my favorite topic to read about. I did like the implications of her pregnancy in this one and how it created conflict.
I can’t wait for the third book in this series! It’s such a fun series and I am glad I discovered this series last year 🙂
Lola recently posted…Sunday Post #213
Thanks for your fantastic review 🙂 <3
You’re welcome! I am already looking forward to the next book in the series!
Lola recently posted…Review: Speak No Evil by Jordan Ford
Yay! Thank you 🙂
xx
🙂