Review: McGyver

McGyver by Candace Blevins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Second chance romances give people hope that their first love may return to them. For some people, the first big "love" is unforgettable. Sometimes this is a good thing; sometimes this may be a bad thing. In McGyver, Ms. Blevins lets the reader decide if it was good or bad.

Iris is protected by an overbearing father. Most over protective ones can only make threats to those who may be a danger to their daughter. Iris's father is rich enough to deliver on his promises. No one is safe from his retribution. When Iris's youthful fancy is torn from her arms, her rebellion is a typical rich teenager's stance. She spirals down the path of sex, drugs and scandals. Nearly a decade later, Iris finally wises up to the fact that her behaviour isn't hurting anyone but herself.

Iris is interesting to me because the opening scene paints a picture of a woman who is doing her best to achieve her goals. She comes across as a young struggling student with a little bit of helping hand from her father. As the story unfolds, her past paints a very different picture. A selfish brat who wastes her father's money and foolishly places herself in ill advisable situations. Her lack of maturity would make me question allowing her the large trust fund to enter her hands on her 25th birthday. I wouldn't let her have access to any money. She can not be trusted based on her history.

This conflict for Iris is well constructed to set her up to prove her growth. She is on a path to prove it but it really doesn't come across that way to her father and I can see his perspective. What is makes this set up so good is the injection of her first love, Danny "McGyver". Danny was a college student on a scholarship who lost everything when kissed a girl beyond his social station. A decade later, Danny is no longer a boy from the wrong side of the tracks with no family but a pack of forest wolves. Danny is part of the RTMC and he is a man of both power and means. Danny grew into a sexy man and is comfortable in his skin. The one thing he and his wolf does not have in their life is Iris. This second intersection of Iris and Danny's life is meant to be.

At heart, this story is about love conquers all. I enjoyed the twists and turns thrown at Iris and Danny. They suit each other so well. Ms. Blevins sets up obstacles in their path that are realistic and educational. For those who are not privy to the Country Club society, this is a nice glimpse into how it can be. The dynamics require people not originally from this high society to learn a new set of rules. Yet the rules are not to different, just a variation of proving a person needs to command respect.

Watching Iris and Danny learn about each other all over again is a pleasure. Their erotic interlude as adults is definitely pleasurable. Ms. Blevins always delivers when it comes to sexy shenanigans. Whilst I wouldn't term this vanilla sex, it is as close to it as it can get. Since it is Ms. Blevins, she can't help but slip in a bit of kink. It is not what the reader expects as it may come out of left field. However, for those who are good at reading between the lines, it is pretty apparent from the beginning where the kink would be. I liked it.

This story is a nice lengthy novel bring about closure in several aspects for the main characters. It is a riveting tale which kept me up late reading. This erotic novel is recommended to paranormal readers who love bad boys and second chance themes. Highly recommended!

* I received this as an arc.

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